Office of the Governor

COVID-19 UPDATE: Gov. Justice announces weekly vaccination clinic site opening in Cabell County

2/12/2021

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CHARLESTON, WV – Gov. Jim Justice joined West Virginia health leaders and other officials today for his latest daily press briefing regarding the State’s COVID-19 response.

CABELL-HUNTINGTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO HOST ONGOING VACCINATION CLINICS AT HUNTINGTON MALL
During Friday’s briefing, Gov. Justice announced that the Cabell-Huntington Health Department, along with various community partners, is opening a regular COVID-19 vaccine site in the old Sears building at the Huntington Mall.

Cabell-Huntington Health Department officials plan to host clinics at this location on an ongoing, weekly basis to serve the Cabell County area.

Once vaccine supply allows for it, this site will be able to administer up to 3,000 vaccinations per day.

“This is a great example of how we work together with our community partners,” Gov. Justice said. “Of course, I spent a lot of time at Marshall, so I’ve got many, many ties to the area, and I could not be more proud of what’s going on there. It’s good stuff. Way to go everyone.”
The Governor was joined during the briefing by Cabell-Huntington Health Department Physician Director Dr. Michael Kilkenny, who discussed the new clinics and ongoing vaccination efforts in Cabell County.

“I first want to thank Dr. Amjad and Secretary Crouch. But we especially thank you, Governor Justice, for the work that you’ve done to make this site available to us,” Dr. Kilkenny said. “We’re set up and ready to start vaccinating next week.

“We’re just really excited to have this great facility, which is scalable and will allow us to vaccinate from the amount of vaccines we have today to any amount that you can secure for the state of West Virginia and send down to us,” Dr. Kilkenny continued, also thanking community partners including Cabell County EMS, Marshall University, Valley Health, Mountain Health, Marshall Health, and the City of Barboursville.
Last month, Gov. Justice announced that WVU Medicine would be implementing a similar “Superhub” clinic at the Morgantown Mall, and said that he hoped to see more counties begin to utilize this type of vaccination model across the state.

“SAVING OUR WISDOM” CLINIC SPOTLIGHT: KANAWHA-CHARLESTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT
Also on Friday, Gov. Justice took time to highlight the ongoing work of the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department and the “Saving Our Wisdom” clinic they hold each week at the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center. 

Over 20,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered through these clinics to date.

“Way to go to Dr. Sherri Young and all of the great people of Kanawha County and all the work you’re doing,” Gov. Justice said. “You stepped up, and, together, we’re getting a lot of good stuff done. So it’s really great, and I’m really proud of you.”
The Governor went on to play a video, spotlighting the massive and continuing effort to vaccinate the residents of Kanawha County.
The Governor also offered a reminder that free COVID-19 vaccination clinics either have been or will be held in all 55 counties across West Virginia by the end of this week through operation “Save Our Wisdom.”

The clinics are currently available for West Virginians who are 65 years of age and older. To date, 121,726 West Virginians age 65 and older have chosen to be vaccinated, including 52,060 who are now fully vaccinated.
Each clinic location has its own, unique schedule. Names are being pulled from the West Virginia COVID-19 Vaccine Registration System to fill out appointments after waitlists are exhausted. All clinics require appointments and walk-ins will not be accepted.

West Virginia was the first state in the nation to put a statewide vaccination pre-registration system in place. The new digital tool allows West Virginians to add themselves to a list of people who are interested in being vaccinated, and will notify those who sign up about the availability of vaccine doses to help streamline vaccination efforts.

To date, more than 240,000 West Virginians have signed up to be added to the pre-registration list.

All West Virginians over the age of 16 are encouraged to pre-register at vaccinate.wv.gov. 

Vaccine supplies are limited, so pre-registration does not mean immediate access to vaccination. Pre-registration offers West Virginians the opportunity to receive real-time updates on vaccine availability and schedule an appointment when available as vaccine supplies allow. The vaccine registration system allows people to select their preferences for communication through text, email, or voicemail over regular phone lines.

West Virginians who need assistance with registration for any reason should call the COVID-19 Vaccine Info Line for help at 1-833-734-0965. The info line is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

VACCINE DISTRIBUTION UPDATE
Additionally Friday, Gov. Justice reported that West Virginia’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration efforts continue to lead the nation.

As of Friday morning, 6.81 percent of West Virginia's entire population has received both doses of the vaccines. West Virginia has the highest rate of fully vaccinated residents of any state in the nation, with only one other state completing vaccinations on at least 6 percent of their residents so far.

According to the latest vaccine numbers posted to the COVID-19 Dashboard (Click "Vaccine Summary" tab), West Virginia now boasts a first dose administration rate of 98.3 percent and a second dose administration rate of 84.5 percent.

To date, West Virginia has administered 232,046 first doses and 122,017 second doses, totaling 354,063 doses administered overall statewide.

COVID-19 CASE NUMBERS UPDATE
Also on Friday, Gov. Justice reported that the current number of active cases in the state is now 13,103, down from 14,076 as of the Governor’s previous COVID-19 briefing on Wednesday.

The number of daily active cases in West Virginia has now decreased for 27 straight days.

Meanwhile, the number of active hospitalizations is now 348, down from 362 on Wednesday, and the first day under 350 hospitalizations since Nov. 13, 2020. Currently, 80 of those patients are in the ICU, marking the lowest number of ICU patients since Nov. 7, 2020.

The cumulative percent of positive cases has decreased to 5.57 percent, down from 5.60 percent on Wednesday.

Click here to view the latest COVID-19 data

FRIDAY MAP UPDATE
Additionally Friday, Gov. Justice provided a look at West Virginia’s latest mid-week County Alert System map update.

The map is updated live on the DHHR’s COVID-19 Dashboard (Click "County Alert System" tab) throughout the week.

Red counties: 1
Orange counties: 18
Gold counties: 11
Yellow counties: 11
Green counties: 14

OUTBREAK REPORT
Also on Friday, Gov. Justice reported that there remains just one church-related outbreak in all of West Virginia. The outbreak is in Fayette County and accounts for a total of six cases.

There are now 35 outbreaks in long-term care facilities across the state, down from 42 such outbreaks on Wednesday.

The Governor also reported that there are now 53 inmate cases across the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) system, up from 52 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, there are now 13 active staff cases across the DCR system, down from 15 as of Wednesday. To view the latest DCR case update, click here.

The Governor went on to announce that four recent deaths among the state’s inmate population, previously reported as being possibly related to COVID-19, have now been confirmed as such. These deaths include one inmate from Mount Olive Correctional Complex and three inmates from Saint Marys Correctional Center. All had underlying medical conditions and all were hospitalized when they died. This brings the total number of COVID-19-related DCR deaths to nine.

AGGRESSIVE TESTING CONTINUES ACROSS STATE
Additionally Friday, Gov. Justice provided an overview of the 51 counties across the state that have free testing events scheduled through the Governor’s Aggressive Testing initiative.

This testing is available to all residents, including asymptomatic individuals. Proof of insurance is not required. Attendees should bring identification, such as a driver’s license or proof of address, to help in returning test results. Those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

Click here to view all locations, dates, times, and more details
An interactive online map of all free testing locations across West Virginia is available on the state’s COVID-19 website. Users can filter the map by type of testing site, including daily testing events, recurring testing events, as well as Walgreens and Fruth Pharmacy testing locations. Users can also filter by county. Each location is marked on the map with a pin. After finding a testing location nearby, users are able to click on the pin for more information about that particular testing site, including the specific location and timeframe during which testing will be held.

Click here to view all locations, dates, times, and more details

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Click here to view all Executive Orders and other actions taken by Gov. Justice to combat the spread of COVID-19 in West Virginia.

For more information about COVID-19 prevention and more, call the State’s toll-free hotline at 1-800-887-4304 or visit Coronavirus.wv.gov.

Contact Information

Jordan Damron, jordan.l.damron@wv.gov

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Charleston, WV 25305

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