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Coronavirus

Distribution plan highlighted

CHARLESTON — The distribution plan in West Virginia for the vaccine against the COVID-19 coronavirus was further defined by the governor on Friday. Allocation will be in two phases, 1 and 2, Gov. Jim Justice said. Phase 1 in the initial shipments of the vaccine is further divided into A, B, C and D, he said. Phase 1A will include hospital acute care tertiary and Q/ICU/ED/COVID units and airway specialists (ENT, G1, heart/lung), nursing home and assisted living staff and residents and pharmacies. Phase 1B includes community infrastructure, emergency response, public health ...

Opinions vary on when W.Va. inmates should be vaccinated for COVID-19

CHARLESTON — As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gives approval for the first of two COVID-19 vaccines, some believe inmates in West Virginia prisons and regional jails should be higher on the list to get the vaccine first. But officials said earlier this week that correctional officers and staff will get the vaccine long before inmates get their turn. According to the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, there are 199 active cases of COVID-19 in the 10 regional jails as of Tuesday with 119 active cases in the 11 correctional centers and prisons and three ...

State vaccination preparation underway

CHARLESTON — Planners in West Virginia are preparing for when the first shipments of the COVID-19 coronavirus vaccines will arrive. The Joint Inter-Agency Task Force composed of public health groups and state agencies has been conducting exercises and plans another large-scale drill today, Bo Wriston, a public affairs spokesman for the West Virginia National Guard, said. The National Guard is a key agency in the distribution of the vaccine in the initial phases to vaccinate priority groups. About 16,500 doses were ordered by the state from Pfizer, Gov. Jim Justice said earlier this ...

Study: W.Va. ranks 13th in vaccine need

CHARLESTON — West Virginia is ranked 13th in the nation for most in need state of the coronavirus vaccine distribution, according to a study based on CDC data. A total of 6.8% of West Virginia’s population is categorized as “high priority” for the vaccine, which includes high-risk ...

FRUSTRATION

BUCKHANNON — Upshur County School board president Dr. Tammy Samples recessed Tuesday night’s meeting “indefinitely” and board members left the Union Elementary School gym after parents began vocalizing their opposition to the board’s considering extending remote learning through ...

State breaks one-day virus death record

CHARLESTON — With COVID-19 death numbers climbing to record levels, the death of a legend, the funeral of a police officer shot in the line of duty and the explosion at a chemical plant Tuesday night that left at least one dead, Gov. Jim Justice encouraged West Virginians to keep these people in their thoughts and prayers. “We’ve had an upheaval of not very good news to say the least,” Justice said Wednesday during his COVID-19 briefing at the Capitol. The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reported Wednesday 31 deaths linked to COVID-19, making Wednesday ...