Gov. Ralph Northam (D) declared a limited state of emergency for Virginia on Monday to alleviate pressure on hospitals after the state has counted record COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in recent days.
The governor announced the emergency order that aims to boost hospital capacity and support “exhausted” health care workers after Virginia counted its highest daily COVID-19 hospital admissions on Friday.
The order designed to provide flexibility to strained hospitals and staff is set to last 30 days because of modeling predicting a peak of cases “in the next few weeks” following the omicron variant surge, the announcement said.
“It has been a roller coaster and we are not built for this kind of uncertainty for this long,” Northam said during a press briefing. “It has been hard on everyone.”
The order waives license requirements for hospitals to increase their bed capacity, permits out-of-state licensed providers to provide care in Virginia, grants physician assistants with at least two years experience to provide care without written agreements and gives some liability protections to physicians
Northam is only in office for a few more days, as Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin (R), who has the option of rescinding the order, prepares to be inaugurated on Saturday, although Northam anticipates Youngkin’s support.
“The Governor has spoken to the Governor-elect, and is hopeful this order will remain in place for 30 days or until no longer necessary,” Northam spokesperson Alena Yarmosky said in an email.
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State of emergency declared in Virginia after record COVID-19 surge https://t.co/z1QSctnjnw pic.twitter.com/9UZTqetDPU
— The Hill (@thehill) January 11, 2022
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