{"id":643,"date":"2020-04-06T13:57:39","date_gmt":"2020-04-06T13:57:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/clinicians\/?page_id=643"},"modified":"2022-05-23T16:54:28","modified_gmt":"2022-05-23T16:54:28","slug":"covid-19-update-for-virginia","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/clinicians\/covid-19-update-for-virginia\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19 Update for Virginia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1162\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/134\/2022\/05\/Letterhead-Oliver-2019-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1692\" height=\"480\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>COVID-19 Update for Virginia<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">April 6, 2020<strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Dear Colleague:<\/p>\n<p>As COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve, please visit the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/\">VDH website<\/a> for updated epidemiological information and clinical guidance.<\/p>\n<p><strong>COVID-19 in Virginia<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>As community transmission increases in Virginia, healthcare facilities should consider <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/hcp\/guidance-hcf.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fhealthcare-facilities%2Fguidance-hcf.html\">additional actions<\/a> to reduce the risk of their employees introducing COVID-19 into their facilities.<\/li>\n<li>There is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/mmwr\/volumes\/69\/wr\/mm6913e1.htm\">growing evidence<\/a> of asymptomatic and presymptomatic spread. CDC recently changed the start of the infectious period to 48 hours before symptom onset.<\/li>\n<li>For people who must leave their home for essential needs (e.g., grocery shopping and picking up pharmacy medications), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/prevent-getting-sick\/cloth-face-cover.html\">CDC recommends that people wear cloth face coverings<\/a> where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain,\u00a0especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.\u00a0 N95 respirators and surgical masks are not recommended in these situations so that they can be reserved for HCP and first responders<\/li>\n<li>Mildly ill patients may not need to be tested and can be managed at home. Clinical diagnoses of COVID-19 are reportable; given the volume, reporting through the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/surveillance-and-investigation\/commonwealth-of-virginiastate-board-of-health\/\">VDH Online Morbidity Report Portal<\/a> is preferred. Please continue to call your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/local-health-districts\/\">local health department<\/a> about suspected outbreaks of COVID-19.<\/li>\n<li>For COVID-19 patients, please provide <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/coronavirus\/what-to-do-if-you-have-confirmed-or-suspected-coronavirus-disease-covid-19\/\">this patient handout about home isolation<\/a> and encourage them to notify their contacts.<\/li>\n<li>A COVID-19 Flag Alert has been added to Virginia\u2019s Emergency Department Care Coordination Program. COVID-19 alerts will automatically become inactive after six weeks.<\/li>\n<li>VDH has updated work restriction recommendations to allowasymptomatic healthcare personnel who have had an exposure to a COVID-19 patient to continue to work after options to improve staffing have been exhausted and in consultation with their occupational health program. More information can be found on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/182\/2020\/04\/VDH-COVID-19-Healthcare-Personnel-Risk-Assessment-Tool.pdf\">VDH COVID-19 Healthcare Personnel Risk Assessment Tool<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Testing<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/health-professionals\/vdh-updated-guidance-on-testing-for-covid-19\/\">VDH criteria for COVID-19 public health testing<\/a> at DCLS have been updated to remove requirements for influenza testing. Until testing is widely available, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/downloads\/priority-testing-patients.pdf\">prioritizing testing at private labs for high risk groups<\/a> should also be considered.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Virginia continues to experience a critical shortage of PPE. CDC has defined <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/downloads\/A_FS_HCP_COVID19_PPE.pdf\">acceptable alternative PPE<\/a> for caring for patients with confirmed or suspected COVID-19. Additional shipments from the Strategic National Stockpile are not expected in the near future. For questions, individual practices, home health and CHCs\/FQHCs should check with their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/local-health-districts\/\">local health districts<\/a>. Hospitals and nursing homes should contact their <a href=\"https:\/\/vhass.org\/regional-info\/\">regional healthcare coalition<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Congregate Settings<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>As of April 3, 31 confirmed outbreaks (defined as having two or more COVID-19 cases) have been reported and 12 (39%) are in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities. Answers to frequently asked questions are available on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/182\/2020\/04\/COVID-19_FAQ-LTCFs_03272020.pdf\">VDH website<\/a> and guidance is on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/healthcare-facilities\/prevent-spread-in-long-term-care-facilities.html\">CDC website<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Other congregate settings, such as jails, prisons, and behavioral health residential facilities also face the threat of COVID-19 introduction and spread. To date, two (7%) confirmed outbreaks have been reported in correctional facilities. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/community\/correction-detention\/index.html\">CDC guidance and resources<\/a> are available for correctional facilities and detention centers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Thank you for all your efforts on the front line of combat against the COVID-19 pandemic. You are an essential part of the public health campaign to protect the health of the people of the Commonwealth.<\/p>\n<p>Sincerely,<\/p>\n<p>M. Norman Oliver, MD, MA<br \/>\nState Health Commissioner<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>Guidance for Long Term Care Facilities (LTCFs)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>LTCF residents are at greater risk for severe disease because of their age and\/or underlying medical conditions.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Implement restrictions now:\n<ul>\n<li>Limit points of entry to the facility. Visitors, volunteers, and non-essential healthcare personnel (HCP) must be restricted from the facility, except for end-of-life situations.<\/li>\n<li>Restrict all residents to their room and enforce social distancing. Cancel all group activities and communal dining.<\/li>\n<li>Residents should be allowed to leave only for medically necessary purposes (e.g., hemodialysis), and should wear a facemask (if tolerated) when they leave.<\/li>\n<li>Designate a location to cohort residents with suspected or confirmed COVID-19.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Identify cases as early as possible by actively screening all residents daily for fever and respiratory symptoms (pulse oximetry).\n<ul>\n<li>LTC residents with COVID-19 may show atypical symptoms including new or worsening malaise, new dizziness, diarrhea, or sore throat. Identification of these symptoms should prompt isolation and further evaluation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Institute staffing recommendations for widespread community transmission:\n<ul>\n<li>Screen HCP for fever and respiratory symptoms at the beginning of their shift. If they are ill, have them put on a facemask and leave the workplace.<\/li>\n<li>Implement universal use of facemasks for HCP while in the facility, as supply allows.<\/li>\n<li>Designate HCP who will be responsible for caring for COVID-19 patients.<\/li>\n<li>To mitigate staffing shortages, exposed HCP may continue to work while wearing a facemask as long as they remain asymptomatic. Testing exposed, asymptomatic HCP is not advised.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Follow <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/hcp\/infection-control-recommendations.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Finfection-control%2Fcontrol-recommendations.html\">environmental cleaning and disinfection procedures<\/a> consistently and correctly.\n<ul>\n<li>Management of laundry, food service utensils, and medical waste should be performed in accordance with routine procedures.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid released\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/files\/document\/4220-covid-19-long-term-care-facility-guidance.pdf\">updated guidance for long-term care facilities<\/a> on April 2: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/files\/document\/4220-covid-19-long-term-care-facility-guidance.pdf\">https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/files\/document\/4220-covid-19-long-term-care-facility-guidance.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>COVID-19 Update for Virginia April 6, 2020 Dear Colleague: As COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve, please visit the VDH website for updated epidemiological information and clinical guidance. COVID-19 in Virginia As community transmission increases in Virginia, healthcare facilities should consider additional actions to reduce the risk of their employees introducing COVID-19 into their facilities. There [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-643","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>COVID-19 Update for Virginia - Clinicians<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/clinicians\/covid-19-update-for-virginia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"COVID-19 Update for Virginia - Clinicians\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"COVID-19 Update for Virginia April 6, 2020 Dear Colleague: As COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve, please visit the VDH website for updated epidemiological information and clinical guidance. 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