Health and Medicine
Defend the Frontlines presser – Ian Price photo
Local health care providers and Fire-EMS agencies are asking for the public’s help to “Defend the Frontlines” – in part by seeking the appropriate level of medical care so emergency departments already strained due to COVID-19 are not overwhelmed. Carilion Clinic, LewisGale Medical Center, the Department of Health and an alliance of regional EMS teams convened at the Berglund Center this morning, asking for the public’s help. The Chief Medical Officer for Carilion Clinic, Dr. Patrice Weiss, also said today that more people need to be vaccinated:
Photo: Virginia Tech
Pfizer says trials now show that its lower-dosage COVID vaccine is safe for 5 to 11 year olds, and it will ask for emergency authorization from the FDA. New River Health System director Dr. Noelle Bissell commented today on the math – where a child just shy of 12 for example would only get one-third the dosage of someone 12-plus. Young children are at low risk of getting COVID-19 says Bissell – but not at NO risk, which is why she urges to have their younger children vaccine if and when the FDA gives the okay.
Photo: VDH
(Richmond, Va.) – The following statement is from state vaccination coordinator Dr. Danny Avula, MD, MPH. “[Friday] an advisory committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted in favor of recommending booster doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to Virginians 65 years and up and those at high risk for severe COVID-19. This is simply a recommendation at this point, and booster doses will not be available in Virginia until the FDA issues an updated authorization, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues new guidance. The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice is scheduled to meet September 22-23, and we do not expect CDC to release recommendations before late next week at the earliest.
“VDH will continue its planning efforts with pharmacies, providers, hospitals and other partners as well as efforts to establish other vaccination sites to ensure that once the CDC issues guidance, eligible Virginians will be able to access a booster dose. VDH will provide information about accessing a booster dose on vaccinate.virginia.gov when more guidance is available.
“Those who are unvaccinated remain at the highest risk of severe illness due to COVID-19. Everyone 12 or older who lives or works in Virginia is eligible to be vaccinated. To find free vaccines nearby, visit vaccinate.virginia.gov or call 877-VAX-IN-VA (877-829-4682,
Dr. Cynthia Morrow/VDH-VT photo
Mixed signals again on a possible 3rd dose or “booster shot” for the COVID-19 vaccines to help ward off the variant strains. Dr. Cynthia Morrow with the Roanoke City and Allegheny Health Districts said today that CDC and FDA approval could come later this week – but yesterday other FDA officials said the data doesn’t show the need for most people to get a booster shot – yet. Morrow says whatever decision on a booster shot may or may not come down soon, the local health districts are already preparing for the logistics of delivering those shots.
Dr Noell Bissell
President Joe Biden’s new federal regulation announced last week requires companies with 100 employees or more to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine. As an alternative they can have non-vaccinated employees tested weekly but Dr. Noelle Bissell with the New River Health District said today that’s a problem right now. Bissell also said that the Health Department – which does NOT use the rapid test – does not have the capacity either to offer weekly testing for non-vaccinated employees.
New drive-through COVID testing sites begin operating Tuesday in the Roanoke Valley in efforts to help slow the spread — and its impacts on health care providers. With local cases surging, and more COVID patients requiring treatment, the Virginia Department of Health hopes more drive-through testing will catch more cases more quickly. The drive-through COVID testing is set for Tuesdays at the Salem Civic Center, 4:00 to 7:00 pm. That begins Tuesday, and starting next week at Fincastle Baptist Church, every other Monday from 3:00 to 6:00 pm. More from WFIR’s Evan Jones:
NEWS RELEASE: (ROANOKE, VA) – As demand for COVID testing has continued to increase, Roanoke City and Alleghany Health Districts (RCAHD) has worked with the Central Office of the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) to identify opportunities to offer free COVID-19 testing at select locations over the next several weeks.
In the past week, as RCAHD has continued to see a surge in local COVID-19 cases, emergency departments and urgent care centers have been challenged to meet the demand for testing while trying to serve residents who need medical attention. All counties in Virginia are currently at a high level of transmission of COVID-19.
“We hope that these sites will supplement the network of existing testing sites, including pharmacies and doctor’s offices, to help address the recent surge in demand for testing,” said Mary Kate Bowser, DNP, RCAHD Nurse Manager.
“We have worked to provide these additional testing locations to accommodate our residents and to help our hospital emergency rooms, urgent care centers, and rescue squads focus on the care of people who are ill.” said Bowser.
The new drive-thru community testing sites which can accommodate 100 people per event will be held beginning on Tuesday, September 14 at:
- Salem Civic Center Parking Lot A on Tuesdays: 9/14, 9/21, 9/28, 10/5 and 10/12 from 4-7pm.
- Dabney S Lancaster Community College on Thursdays: 9/16, 9/30, 10/14 and 10/28 from 4-7pm.
- Fincastle Baptist Church on Mondays: 9/20, 10/4 and 10/18 from 3-6pm.
Additional local sites will be added as locations are secured. For an up-to-date list of all testing locations, visit https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/covid-19-testing-sites/.
While vaccination is the most effective strategy to end the pandemic, testing remains an important tool to help identify and monitor trends in COVID-19 infection. VDH recommends that the following people be tested for COVID-19:
- People with symptoms or signs of COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status.
- People who have been referred for COVID-19 testing by their healthcare provider or the state/local health department.
- Most people who have had close contact with someone known or suspected to have COVID-19.
- Fully vaccinated people should be tested 3-5 days following a known exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, even if you don’t have symptoms.
- People who are not fully vaccinated should be tested immediately after an exposure and again at 5-7 days following exposure if the first test is negative.
- People who tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 3 months and recovered do not need to get tested after exposure as long as they do not have symptoms.
- People who participate in activities that are higher risk for COVID-19 exposure (e.g., travel, attending large events where social distancing is not possible, or being in crowded indoor settings).
- People who plan to travel or who have recently returned from travel, with some exceptions for fully vaccinated people.
- People who are not fully vaccinated and who plan to visit people at high risk of developing severe COVID-19.
For more information about COVID-19 testing call (877) 829-4682, 8 a.m.-6 p.m., Monday-Saturday.
(from VDH) The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) applauds President Biden’s initiatives, announced September 9, to meet the growing challenge of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant, which is now powering a surge in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the United States and in Virginia. With the U.S. averaging close to 150,000 cases and about 1,500 deaths per day, primarily attributable to the Delta variant, it is imperative we do all we can to beat back this surge.
Many Virginia employers from across the economic spectrum have already instituted one of the planks of the president’s response to the Delta surge: vaccination requirements for their employees. Leading the way has been the Commonwealth of Virginia following Governor Ralph Northam’s directive for all 120,000 state employees to be vaccinated or undergo regular testing for infection. The governor has called on local governments and other governmental entities to follow the Commonwealth’s lead, emphasizing that vaccination is the only sure way out of this pandemic and the only sure way to return to pre-pandemic normality. President Biden’s directive to employers with 100 or more employees to require their employees to be vaccinated will build more momentum for COVID-19 vaccination in the private sector. VDH echoes that call.