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This week, Gov. Jim Justice joined
State health leaders in the fight to slow the spread of novel
coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The Governor's Administration is
working to keep the public informed of the many precautionary measures
being taken in the interest of protecting them from the spread of the
disease.
Additional information about COVID-19 and what West Virginia is doing
to combat the virus can be found on Coronavirus.wv.gov
or by calling the state's 24/7 hotline at 1-800-887-4304.
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On Friday, Gov. Jim
Justice issued an Executive Order, mandating the
statewide closure of all West Virginia state park lodges as well as the
closure of the Hatfield McCoy Trail to the general public. This
closure only pertains to lodges and the Hatfield McCoy Trail
specifically. It does not mandate the closure of entire state parks,
campsites, or cabins.
Also on Friday, Gov. Justice ordered the suspension of several
regulations, which will cut bureaucratic red tape and allow
professionals and all West Virginians more flexibility throughout the
ongoing State of Emergency related to COVID-19.
The Governor also announced that The American Red Cross is facing a
severe blood shortage due to an unprecedented number of blood drive
cancellations during the COVID-19 outbreak. As the COVID-19 pandemic
has grown in the U.S., blood drive cancellations have grown at an
alarming rate. Healthy individuals are needed to donate now to help
patients counting on lifesaving blood.
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Gov. Justice also announced that the
West Virginia Tourism Office has launched an interactive map of open restaurants
that shows the locations of all eateries in the state that are
continuing to operate drive thru, carryout, and delivery services
at this time.
At the direction of the Governor, the Department of Health and Human
Resources Bureau for Children and Families requested the immediate
suspension of the rule requiring applicants of the Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (TANF) program to participate in drug screening,
which often requires close contact between multiple individuals.
Also Friday, the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and
Council for Community and Technical College Education voted to provide
students with greater flexibilities in accessing and renewing state
financial aid programs.
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On Thursday, Gov. Justice issued an Executive Order, directing the West
Virginia Department of Commerce and WorkForce West Virginia to provide
unemployment benefits to those affected by COVID-19 to the maximum
extent permitted under federal law.
Individuals who are separated from employment, have had their hours of
employment reduced, or are prevented from working due to either a
documented medical condition caused by COVID-19 or due to communicable
disease control measures related to COVID-19 are eligible for these
benefits, according to the Governor’s order.
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On Thursday, Gov. Jim
Justice joined State health leaders at the Capitol Complex in
Charleston for a virtual press briefing to once again update the public
on the many precautionary measures being taken. During his
remarks, the Governor announced that he had issued an Executive Order, mandating the
statewide closure of all barbershops, hair salons, and nail salons.
Also during the briefing, Gov. Justice announced that, through the
Governor’s Contingency Fund, the state has purchased 100,000 N95
surgical masks from a private West Virginia business. The West Virginia
National Guard also bought 275 sets of highly protective Tyvek suits
with special filtering masks which will also be used by healthcare
providers and first responders.
Gov. Justice also issued an Executive Order Thursday, giving counties
the authority and flexibility to evaluate courthouse services and
staffing and to make decisions that are in the best interest of each
respective county, as determined by officials from each county.
Gov. Justice also announced during the press conference that on
February 15 he came into contact with an individual who has since
tested positive for COVID-19. Because of this contact, the Governor was
administered a test for COVID-19 and the results came back negative.
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On Wednesday, Gov. Justice joined
State health leaders for a press briefing to announce that he had
issued an Executive Order, mandating the
statewide closure of all fitness centers, gymnasiums, recreation
centers, and similar businesses or places where the public tends to
congregate for recreation, sport, or other similar leisure
activities. Also Wednesday, at the request of the Governor, the
West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration temporarily
suspended the regulatory rule prohibiting bars and restaurants from
providing beer and wine for off-premises consumption to the citizens of
the State of West Virginia.
Also Wednesday, Gov. Justice called President Donald J. Trump at the
White House. During the call, President Trump pledged his support to
the state of West Virginia, including agreeing to quickly provide swabs
and other testing supplies.
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Gov. Justice also announced that he
has ordered all cabinet secretaries in his administration to determine
non-essential employee positions and allow those employees to begin
working from home. The Governor has tasked his cabinet secretaries with
determining which positions will be considered “essential” in their
respective departments.
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The Governor also asked all businesses
across West Virginia to look for ways to allow as many employees as
possible to work from home while still keeping our essential businesses
operating.
The West Virginia Capitol Complex remained open for official business
Wednesday. But tours and other non-business visits were halted until
further notice.
On Wednesday, the West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles announced
their regional offices will close to the public beginning Thursday,
March 19. Out of an abundance of caution, and in accordance with the
most recent guidelines and best practices recommended by both the CDC
and West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources regarding
COVID-19, this action will reduce exposure to both customers and
employees. The DMV is also extending the expiration date of any
driver’s license, instructional permit, or vehicle registration with an
expiration date in March or April of 2020 for three months from the
date of expiration on the face of the document. However, DMV will
continue to renew any of these items online or through the U.S. Mail as
they come in.
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Gov. Justice conducted a
statewide address at the Capitol Complex in Charleston Tuesday.
During the address, the Governor announced the state's first positive case of COVID-19.
Gov. Justice also announced that he would be ordering the closure of
all restaurants and bars in West Virginia. These establishments are
able to continue to operate carry out and drive-thru operations. Gov.
Justice also announced that he has ordered the closure of all casinos.
The Bureau of Senior Services also released Tuesday that they are working
with county-based provider networks and Area Agencies on Aging to
address the needs of our seniors regarding COVID-19. On Tuesday, the
Bureau received new guidance and policy related to funds from
the Administration on Community Living. Home-delivered meals
are continuing and arrangements are being made for congregate meal
recipients to also continue to receive meals. In-home services are also
continuing. Providers are required to maintain contact with their homebound
and nutrition participants.
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During the Governor’s press conference
Monday, he announced that due to the emerging health threat posed by
COVID-19 and in accordance with President Donald J. Trump’s declaration
of a National Emergency, he had declared a State of Emergency for all 55 counties
in West Virginia.
Also during Monday’s address, Gov. Justice announced that he and health
industry leaders are looking into ways that hospitals across West
Virginia can coordinate resources to ensure that as many beds and as
much equipment is available in the event of community spread of
COVID-19 in West Virginia.
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Before Monday’s press conference, Gov.
Justice and several of his cabinet officials took part in a video
conference with President Trump, the governors of every state and
territory in the country, and other national leaders to discuss
preventative measures that are being taken to slow the spread of
coronavirus, while also ensuring the public has what they need to live
their day-to-day lives.
President Donald J. Trump issued a new set of guidelines for all
Americans for the next 15 days to slow the spread of COVID-19.
This includes avoiding all social gatherings of more than 10 people.
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On
Monday, members of the West Virginia National Guard provided classroom
and hands-on personal protective equipment instruction to more than 50
first responders from Kentucky and West Virginia in order to help
prepare local public safety agencies on how to minimize
cross-contamination through proper wear of this equipment.
The training was provided as part of a coordinated state-level public
health preparation and response effort for the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic outbreak, initiated by Gov. Justice, and being led by the West
Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.
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The
West Virginia Department of Education Office of Child Nutrition
announced Sunday that they had worked with all 55 counties to open
sites to feed children this week. Starting Monday, March 16, counties
opened more than 500 sites around the state to ensure children who
require school breakfasts and lunches received meals during the
statewide school closure caused by the COVID-19 threat. The amount
of work that was done over a 48-hour period usually requires months of
planning. However, at the direction of Gov. Justice, Superintendent
Clayton Burch, his leadership team, and the Office of Child Nutrition
worked throughout the weekend with counties to prepare for distribution
on Monday.
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On Saturday, Gov. Justice and the West
Virginia Department of Education announced that all schools will remain
closed to students through at least March 27, 2020. No return date for
students has been set at this time. Gov. Justice, State Superintendent
of Schools Clayton Burch, and other education leaders will continue to
monitor COVID-19 developments throughout this two-week period, with the
goal of getting students back to class as soon as safely possible.
Only essential staff reported on Monday, March 16, through Wednesday,
March 18. During this time, the county superintendents worked with
local boards of education, leadership teams, and essential staff to
devise a continuity plan that outlines how to best meet the needs of
students and the community during this extended closure.
All child nutrition programs are minimally affected by this statewide
school closure. Essential personnel including transportation staff,
custodial staff, and food service staff are necessary during this time
to ensure child nutrition efforts are implemented effectively for the
over 200,000 students who rely on school meals for their daily
nutrition.
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Last Friday, Gov. Justice announced
that due to the emerging health threat posed by COVID-19, he has
ordered the closure of all pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade schools
in West Virginia. At the conclusion of the school day on Friday,
March 13, all pre-K-12 schools and school-related extracurricular
activities closed to students. This order does not apply to West
Virginia’s childcare system such as daycare centers and home-based
childcare providers. Gov. Justice recommended that all community and
private schools also close and follow the guidance of the State.
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