Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam appointed Friday a top public health official to focus on combating outbreaks of the coronavirus in long term care facilities.
“These are our parents and grandparents. We have a special obligation to protect them, in addition to our responsibility to protect public health,” Mr. Northam said Friday at a press conference.
The Virginia governor tapped Dr. Laurie Forlano, a deputy commissioner for public health in the Virginia Department of Health who has been leading the coronavirus mitigation strategy, to lead a task force made of other state agencies to accomplish three tasks:
ensure nursing homes have the financial resources they need to combat the virus;strengthen staffing and infection control measures at long term care facilities; andkeep these facilities and the public informed about where coronavirus cases are occurring.
Ms. Forlano said 525 cases, or about 10%, of the state’s 4,509 cases are residents and staff in a long term care facility, and 32 deaths, or about 25%, of the state’s 121 reported deaths from coronavirus are from that population.
Mr. Northam also put into the budget, which the Virginia General Assembly will vote on on April 22, a provision to allow the Department of Corrections to release inmates who have one year or less on their sentences and don’t pose a threat to the public.
Normally re-entry planning takes months, but Mr. Northam charged the DOC with completing this task in the weeks leading up to the state legislature vote.
Wanting to end his press conference on a positive note, Mr. Northam announced that the Virginia Commonwealth University has found a way to use ultraviolet radiation to disinfect N95 masks.
“We have all seen reports that social distancing seems to be working,” the Democratic governor said. “I hope this is the case but social distancing will not continue to work if we stop doing it.”
• Sophie Kaplan can be reached at skaplan@washingtontimes.com.
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