RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Governor Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency for Virginia Monday afternoon during a press briefing for COVID-19 response updates in the Commonwealth.
On January 7, Virginia set a new one-day record for COVID-19 hospitalizations with 3,329 newly hospitalized COVID patients reported by the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association.
In the last month, the VHHA said they’ve seen a 194% increase in hospitalizations. The Central, Eastern and Northern regions have seen especially high increases.
The Virginia Department of Health and Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association recently urged people to not visit the emergency room for care that wasn’t urgent. Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medical Center said they had to move elective and non-urgent procedures due to the surge in COVID cases.
This was Governor Northam’s last coronavirus press briefing update, as the inauguration of Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin will take place this weekend.
The press briefing began a little after 1 p.m. Monday, and included statements from Northam and the Virginia Emergency Support Team, who provided updates on the Commonwealth’s response to COVID-19.
