COVID App Use Urged By VA Officials As State Tops 100K In Cases

VIRGINIA — As coronavirus cases across the state continue to climb, Virginia officials urged residents to download COVIDWISE, an app that lets people know if they have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for the virus.

Northern Virginia passed the benchmark of 100,000 coronavirus cases on Sunday, Inside NOVA reported. The Virginia Department of Health reported 1,436 coronavirus cases in Northern Virginia on Sunday, then 663 cases were tallied on Monday, which pushed the region's total cases to 101,216.

"As COVID-19 cases continue rising, the Commonwealth recommends you download the COVIDWISE application, which protects your privacy and personal information while alerting you when you may have been exposed to COVID-19," tweeted Rep. Elaine Luria of the 2nd Congressional District.

The app sends an alert if a person has been close to a person who tested positive for the virus. Download the COVIDWISE app from Apple's App Store or Google Play and opt in to the notification system to receive alerts.

When the app was launched, Gov. Ralph Northam told Virginians their movements are not being tracked by the app. Rather it uses random Bluetooth keys shared between devices within close proximity for at least 15 minutes. If the time was at least 15 minutes and devices distance was within 6feet, the app will send an alert.

On Sunday, 3,999 new coronavirus cases were reported by the Virginia Department of Health. The seven-day average of daily cases is 3,818. Northern Virginia had 1,436 new cases and a seven-day average of 1,069 daily cases.

The statewide seven-day average of positive PCR tests is 12.2 percent as of Dec. 24, while Northern Virginia's average is 11 percent. A seven-day average of 27,750 testing encounters are being reported, and Northern Virginia's average is 8,361.

A total of 336,175 coronavirus cases have been reported in the state; 17,605 hospitalizations have been recorded. To date, 4,861 deaths have been caused by the virus.

Death data is available as both the date of report and by date of death and are updated as amendments to the death records as they are received by VDH.

According to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, 2,563 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19; to date 29,782 confirmed COVID cases have been treated and discharged from the state's hospitals.

Ventilator use among all hospital patients is at 33 percent capacity, with 1,007 of the 3,040 available in use. ICU occupancy is at 78 percent. There have been no hospitals reporting difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment within 72 hours since Sept. 18.

As of Monday, 41,709 vaccine doses have been administered in Virginia, up from 38,172 does as of Sunday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

The agency is tracking COVID-19 vaccination numbers as vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna are being distributed around the state under Food and Drug Administration emergency use authorization.

No one has received the second dose, which both Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines require. Pfizer's doses should be taken 21 days apart, and Moderna's doses should be 28 days apart. To date, 227,425 vaccine doses have been distributed around Virginia.

According to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, 1,004 of 3,029 available ventilators are in use among all hospital patients in Virginia, representing 33 percent capacity. ICU occupancy stands at 79 percent, compared to the 2019 average of 67 percent. No hospitals have reported difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment within 72 hours since Sept. 18.

Below are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area from Sunday to Monday:

• Alexandria: 7,107 cases, 426 hospitalizations, 86 deaths; increase of 39 cases
• Arlington County: 8,631 cases, 647 hospitalizations, 177 deaths; increase of 63 cases
• Fairfax County: 42,786 cases, 2,879 hospitalizations, 671 deaths; increase of 327 cases
• Fairfax City: 295 cases, 25 hospitalizations, 10 deaths; increase of one case
• Falls Church: 170 cases, 16 hospitalizations, six deaths; increase of two cases
• Loudoun County: 13,683 cases, 631 hospitalizations, 154 deaths; increase of 83 cases and one hospitalization
• Manassas: 2,834 cases, 147 hospitalizations, 30 deaths; increase of five cases
• Manassas Park: 915 cases, 62 hospitalizations, eight deaths; increase of five cases
• Prince William County: 24,795 cases, 1,206 hospitalizations, 249 deaths; increase of 138 cases and two hospitalizations
• Fredericksburg: 988 cases, 63 hospitalizations, eight deaths; increase of 10 cases
• Spotsylvania County: 4,510 cases, 208 hospitalizations, 67 deaths; increase of 40 cases
• Stafford County: 4,930 cases, 222 hospitalizations, 23 deaths; increase of 39 cases