- The Washington Times - Thursday, June 18, 2020

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said Thursday that phase three of the state’s coronavirus reopening would not begin before June 26 at the earliest, as he outlined restrictions that would be relaxed when that time comes.

Speaking in Fairfax, Mr. Northam said social distancing and face masks in indoor public spaces will be mandatory when the commonwealth enters phase three.

“Studies increasingly show how effective face coverings can be to reduce the spread of this virus, but we all need to wear them and wear them properly,” the Democratic governor said. “This is easy to do, and I’m proud of all the Virginians who are showing a responsibility for their neighbor by wearing their face coverings.”

Phase three will allow for outdoor public gatherings of up to 250 people. Among the other details revealed for the next phase:

χ Nonessential retail and food establishments like restaurants and bars will no longer have a capacity cap.

χ Museums, zoos and other outdoor spaces can reopen at 50% with a cap of 1,000.

χ Gyms and fitness centers may open to 75% capacity.

χ Pools may open at 75% capacity, with physical distancing still required.

χ Hair salons and other personal grooming businesses will still require physical distancing.

χ Child care facilities may open, but overnight summer camps will not.

As of Thursday, the state reported 56,238 total cases of COVID-19 with 5,744 ever hospitalized and 1,586 deaths out of an estimated state population of 8.5 million.

But Virginia’s infection “curve” has trended downward since late May, with the seven-day rolling average of new cases at just 388 last week. Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 tracker showed that 7,429 persons in Virginia had recovered.

“While our data is good and our restrictions may ease, the virus has not gone anywhere,” Mr. Northam said. “We are adapting our lives around it, but it has not changed.”

On Wednesday, Virginia House Minority Leader Todd Gilbert released a statement criticizing the governor’s delay in moving to phase three.

“When Governor Northam laid out the criteria for reopening Virginia’s economy, he said the process would be led by science, data, and testing. Yet after two additional weeks of falling case numbers and a continual drop in the percentage positive of tests, Governor Northam called an audible yesterday and said Phase 3 could not begin this week,” wrote Mr. Gilbert, Page Republican.

“Let us be clear, the Governor is once again walking back his own criteria. Tens of thousands of Virginians have lost their jobs, and unemployment spiked to 10 percent. If Governor Northam genuinely wants ’science, data, and testing’ to drive our reopening, he should allow Phase 3 to proceed,” he wrote.

A pediatric neurologist, Mr. Northam held up as a warning sign news from Florida that a group of 16 friends all contracted COVID-19 after hanging out at a bar without masks.

“I’ll say this as a physician, I think there were a lot of individuals that thought that the heat and the humidity would really help this virus go away,” the governor said. “Well, look at the states now that are being affected with the surge, and they’re in the southern parts of our country.”

Mr. Northam also announced that he has tapped Dr. Rebecca Vargas-Jackson of the Fairfax County Health Department’s office of innovation to lead the state’s coronavirus outreach effort for the Hispanic community in Northern Virginia.

The governor noted that Hispanic people account for 35% of coronavirus hospitalizations but just 10% of the state’s population.

• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.

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