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Gov. Jim Justice delivered his fifth State of the State address on Wednesday night to the West Virginia Legislature. The Governor laid out his vision for how the state can build on its momentum and claim its place as the #1 state in the nation to live, work, run a business, and raise a family.
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Gov. Justice also highlighted accomplishments from the last year including:
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On Monday, Gov. Justice announced that West Virginia has partnered with Walgreens through the Federal Pharmacy Program to offer COVID-19 vaccinations to West Virginians age 65 and older, as well as members of the state’s critical healthcare workforce.
On Wednesday, Gov. Justice announced that the projected allocation through the new partnership has been increased from 5,800 to 7,300 doses per week. A total of 73 Walgreens locations across West Virginia are set to receive 100 doses each for distribution.
The Governor went on to thank Walgreens for their commitment to West Virginia, and added that state leaders plan to work with the company to utilize West Virginia’s new vaccine pre-registration system to offer appointments to those who qualify to get vaccinated at select Walgreens locations across the state.
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On Friday, 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.
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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.
The Governor also offered a reminder this week that free COVID-19 vaccination clinics were being held in all 55 counties across West Virginia 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.
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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.
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On Wednesday, Gov. Justice warned residents that the West Virginia Fusion Center recently discovered the unauthorized sale of COVID-19 vaccines on various websites.
“You should not attempt to purchase a vaccine online,” Gov. Justice said. “Vaccines are not authorized for sale through any marketplace and should be reported to the COVID hotline or to law enforcement."
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The Martin Luther King Jr. State Holiday Commission is providing 500 KN-95 protective masks to five community service organizations in West Virginia. The mask distribution reflects the MLK Day theme of “The Urgency of Creating the Beloved Community” by providing masks to help protect the communities these organizations serve.
Studies show that wearing face masks correctly, combined with other recommended public health measures, such as hand-washing and social distancing, helps to limit the spread of COVID-19.
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West Virginia is once again the top-performing state in the nation for school breakfast participation. Tuesday’s announcement is a part of the annual Food Research and Action Center Breakfast Scorecard. This year marks the seventh consecutive year in which the Mountain State earned this distinction. Additionally, West Virginia lawmakers were noted for supporting legislation that builds stronger school breakfast programs.
During the 2019-20 school year, 84.1 low-income students participated in school breakfasts for every 100 that participated in school lunch, an increase over last year’s number of 83. FRAC sets a goal of reaching 70 low-income students participating in school breakfast for every 100 in school lunch, and West Virginia and Vermont were the only states to surpass that national benchmark.
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On Wednesday, West Virginia Superintendent of Schools W. Clayton Burch approved a waiver to West Virginia Board of Education Policy 2436.10: Participation in Extracurricular Activities. The waiver will allow those in middle and high school with grade point averages below 2.0 at the conclusion of the fall semester to continue to participate fully in extracurricular activities through March 19, 2021.
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the education of students statewide and throughout the country during the past year. The lack of consistent instructional delivery and the inability for students to regularly meet in-person with teachers, counselors, coaches and other school support personnel has affected the academic performance of thousands of students.
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Wednesday, the West Virginia Board of Education and Department of Education entered into the West Virginia Public Education Equity Partnership with the Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs establishing a joint commitment to improve equity structures in public schools throughout the state. The partnership will explore disparities in student achievement and enlist community support to address them alongside members of the education community.
The mission of the equity partnership is rooted in the belief that race, ethnicity, economic circumstances, primary language, and special needs do not predict academic success, but rather a culturally responsive staff and effective use of research-based strategies provide the ability to close gaps in student outcomes.
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This week Division of Highways crews were out in full force with bright yellow plow trucks; while the Parkways Authority cleared the West Virginia Turnpike with bright orange plows. The colorful plows were a welcome sight in unsightly weather, but weather occurs on all miles at once; while each driver can only clear one mile at a time.
Older DOH snowplows, in white like the snow, are still seen out as well but even with reflective strips they can be more difficult to see in gray weather. So when the DOH began welcoming new snowplows to their inventory, they specified they be painted yellow.
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A major paving project on a section of Appalachian Corridor H is among 17 projects included in a recent bid letting conducted by the West Virginia Division of Highways on Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021. The West Virginia Division of Highways is reviewing the bids and hopes to award contracts for these projects soon.
So far for 2021, low bids for bid lettings have come in more than $9 million below Engineer’s Estimates.
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The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has canceled three events set for spring and summer 2021 because of concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. For the second consecutive year, the Make It Shine Earth Day Celebration, West Virginia Youth Environmental Day and state Junior Conservation Camp will not take place. All three events were canceled in 2020 because of COVID restrictions.
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According to preliminary data collected by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, hunters in the Mountain State harvested 106,861 white-tailed deer during the 2020-2021 fall and winter seasons. The harvest was 7.5 percent higher than the 2019 harvest of 99,437 deer and 6 percent below the five-year average of 113,444.
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On Monday, Gov. Justice was joined by his bulldog, Baby Dog, who celebrated correctly predicting that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would win Super Bowl LV over the weekend. The Governor brought Baby Dog in for his briefing last Friday to make the prediction as a way to urge West Virginians to avoid large Super Bowl parties.
In addition to correctly predicting that Tampa Bay would win the game, she also correctly predicted that the Buccaneers would score exactly 31 points.
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