The Shadow
RICHMOND — Gov. Ralph Northam says Virginia is not ready to begin a phased approach to reopen business.
On Friday, Northam responded to President Donald Trump’s plan for reopening parts of the country where the Coronavirus is being brought under control.
Thursday, Trump told the nation’s governors that restrictions could be eased to allow businesses to reopen over the next several weeks in places that have extensive testing and a marked decrease in COVID-19 cases.
In a three-phase approach, Trump is recommending that states and regions see a decline in documented cases over a period of 14 days, ensure that hospitals can treat all patients without crisis care, and have a robust testing program in place including antibody tests for at-risk health care workers before moving to a phased reopening.
Northam said Virginia has not met that criteria yet, as the number of positive cases in the state increased to 7,491 Friday, up 602 from Thursday.
“These guidelines are consistent with everything in Virginia that we have been doing and will continue to do,” Northam said Friday of the president’s plan.
More than 100,000 Virginians filed unemployment claims in the past week, new data released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor shows.
Northam said it’s a significant drop from the nearly 150,000 from a week before but still a massive number compared to filings before the Coronavirus outbreak.
Overall there have been more than 415,000 claims filed in the last month, which is about 9 percent of the state’s workforce.
Northam, who on Wed-nesday extended an executive order closing non-essential businesses for another two weeks, said he is working closely with officials in Washington, D.C., and other governors to develop a regional approach to opening businesses.
“We have to do this with deliberation based on science, safety and testing,” Northam said, while noting the state’s actions are working, despite the continued rise in COVID-19 cases.
“Just because cases are going up does not mean that social distancing is not working. Our actions are keeping the cases to a level that our hospitals can manage,” he said.
On Friday, the state reported that 1,221 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, up 107 from Thursday. The death toll in Virginia was 231, an increase of 23 from the previous day.
Virginians are under a stay-at-home order through June 10.
Northam said much-needed shipments of personal protective equipment arrived in Virginia this week and gloves and masks have begun to be distributed to medical workers.
The governor said he had signed an order easing licensing restriction on nurse practioneers and out-of-state doctors to provide more help in the field.
His executive order will also broaden the use of telehealth throughout the state.
Rules are also being eased to help long-term care facilities recruit staff and volunteers. The state is beefing up efforts to ensure that persons who are confirmed to have Coronavirus through testing are not admitted to long-term care facilities.
If a resident or a staff member of a long-term care facility tests positive for COVID-19, monitoring and testing of other residents and staff will be intensified.
Jail populations are also decreasing in an effort to stop the spread of the virus.
Since March, local jail populations across the state have been lowered by 17 percent as part of a move to develop alternatives to incarceration for misdemeanor offenses.
Northam said there has been a 67 percent decrease in persons entering jail for misdemeanor offenses.
“All of this is being done with public safety in mind,” he said.
