Arlington Healthiest In Virginia, Petersburg At Bottom: Ranking

VIRGINIA — Arlington County ranks healthiest in Virginia, according to a new study, helping the county to see better outcomes from the COVID-19 pandemic than other jurisdictions in the state, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

The 2021 rankings, released this week by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, show that the five healthiest jurisdictions in Virginia are all in Northern Virginia: Arlington County, Loudoun County, Falls Church City, Fairfax County and Alexandria City.

The five jurisdictions with the poorest health, starting with least healthy, are the cities of Petersburg, Galax, Covington, Martinsville and Hopewell.

For the rankings, the researchers looked at several factors in each jurisdiction, including length of life, quality of life, tobacco use, diet and exercise, alcohol use, and access to health care.

The data used to calculate the 2021 rankings was from 2019 and earlier and does not yet reflect the impact of the pandemic or programs health districts have implemented in the last year to improve health in their communities, the VDH said.

Even within Arlington and other Northern Virginia jurisdictions, health disparities and inequities exist within their borders, similar to what is seen at the statewide level, health officials said.

“Arlington and areas like Northern Virginia have much to celebrate, being highly ranked in many areas contributing to excellent health, including employment and education,” Reuben K. Varghese, MD, director of the Arlington Health District, said in a statement. “And yet, in areas with such wonderful overall health outcomes, there are significant disparities even within a 26-square-mile jurisdiction where there is a decade of difference in life expectancy between census tracts.”

Vaccinations

On Friday, the VDH reported Friday that 1,375,802 Virginians, or 16.1 percent of the state's population, were fully vaccinated.

According to VDH data, 3,850,838 total doses have been administered, with 2,565,265 people, or 30.1 percent of the state's population, receiving at least their first dose.

On Thursday, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced that residents 16 and older in Virginia will be eligible to receive the vaccine starting Sunday, April 18, which is ahead of the May 1 goal President Joe Biden set for the country.

Based on the projected supply Virginia expects to receive from the federal government, all health districts will be able to open appointments to the general public by April 18. Those at the highest risk will continue to be given priority in the scheduling process.

SEE ALSO: COVID-19 Vaccinations To Open Soon For All Virginians 16 And Up

The state is averaging 66,882 doses administered per day. Local health departments lead the state with 1,176,763 total doses given, followed by pharmacies with 878,792 total doses. Hospitals have administered a total of 820,276 vaccines. Medical practices are next with 578,529 doses administered followed by community health providers at 396,478.

COVID-19 Data

The Virginia Department of Health reported a 6.2-percent coronavirus positivity rate on Friday from tests performed on residents over the past seven days. The positivity rate is up from 6.1 percent reported Thursday and continues to inch higher from the 2021 low of 5.4-percent positivity rate reported on March 12.

But the positive rate is far below the 2021 high of 17.4 percent reported on Jan. 3 by the VDH. In the two months after reaching 17.4 percent in early January, the state reported more than 3,000 deaths from COVID-19.

Since the start of the pandemic, the all-time high of the seven-day coronavirus positivity rate was 20.2 percent on April 20, 2020.

On average, 18,838 daily PCR testing encounters were reported statewide on March 28, down from a peak of 35,034 on Jan. 14.

On Friday, 1,538 additional COVID-19 cases were reported by VDH, and the seven-day average of daily cases was 1,468. Northern Virginia accounted for 386 new cases on Friday and has a seven-day average of 402 daily cases.

An additional 11 COVID-19 deaths were reported Friday, bringing the death total to 10,279. Virginia's COVID-19 hospitalizations stand at 1,043 statewide as of Monday, up from a 2021 low of 977 on March 20. The current count includes 243 patients in intensive care units and 137 on ventilators.

Ventilator use among all hospital patients is at 28 percent, and ICU occupancy is at 77 percent, according to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association.

Here are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area from Thursday to Friday:

• Alexandria: 10,996 cases, 534 hospitalizations, 128 deaths; increase of 31 cases and three hospitalizations
• Arlington County: 14,319 cases, 808 hospitalizations, 246 deaths; increase of 46 cases and six hospitalizations
• Fairfax County: 71,805 cases, 3,728 hospitalizations, 1,039 deaths; increase of 144 cases and 14 hospitalizations; one death removed
• Fairfax City: 524 cases, 42 hospitalizations, 18 deaths; increase of one case
• Falls Church: 392 cases, 20 hospitalizations, nine deaths; increase of four cases
• Loudoun County: 25,452 cases, 954 hospitalizations, 270 deaths; increase of 61 cases, one hospitalization and one death
• Manassas: 4,172 cases, 166 hospitalizations, 45 deaths; increase of eight cases
• Manassas Park: 1,171 cases, 67 hospitalizations, 12 deaths; no changes
• Prince William County: 42,187 cases, 1,513 hospitalizations, 468 deaths; increase of 91 cases and one hospitalization
• Fredericksburg: 1,890 cases, 96 hospitalizations, 22 deaths; increase of three cases
• Spotsylvania County: 8,894 cases, 291 hospitalizations, 108 deaths; increase of 18 cases and one hospitalization
• Stafford County: 10,241 cases, 336 hospitalizations, 69 deaths; increase of 44 cases; one hospitalization removed

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