VA Governor Criticizes Trump's Comment Downplaying Coronavirus

VIRGINIA — As Virginia's coronavirus metrics remain steady, Gov. Ralph Northam blasted President Donald Trump's assertion that people should not be afraid of COVID-19 illness. In Virginia, there have been 153,182 cumulative coronavirus cases, 11,316 hospitalizations, and 3,291 deaths.

The president made the statement in a tweet Monday, announcing he would leave Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland that evening. Trump had been staying in the hospital since Friday after testing positive for the coronavirus.

"Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life," reads Trump's tweet. "We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge."

Northam, who has urged residents to stay vigilant about wearing face masks, practicing social distancing and other public health recommendations, told the Washington Post the president's message was "irresponsible." The governor cited over 200,000 deaths tied to COVID-19 in the U.S., the most of any country as tracked by Johns Hopkins. Northam, a pediatric neurologist who did his residencies at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, also noted the president "has access to the best medical care, medications, treatments other people don’t have access to."

Trump's treatment plan has included the steroid dexamethasone, a dose of a drug that Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. is testing to supply antibodies to help his immune system fight the virus, and doses of a five-day course of remdesivir, a Gilead Sciences drug currently used for moderately and severely ill patients.

Northam and his wife, Pamela, previously sent their "best wishes" to Trump and First Lady Melania Trump after they tested positive for the virus last week. The Northams announced on Sept. 25 that they also tested positive. The governor announced earlier this week he was experiencing cold-like symptoms and sense of smell loss. Virginia's first lady was reported to have mild symptoms.

In Virginia, there were 625 new cases and 15 deaths reported on Tuesday. The number of deaths reported by day has varied depending on when the Virginia Department of Health receives death certificate information. A more accurate visualization is VDH's deaths by date of death information, although data may be incomplete for recent weeks. So far, the seven-day moving average of deaths was highest on May 5 with an average of 39.6 deaths. The average has been in the teens in recent months.

Virginia's latest data on age groups shows the most cases in the 20 to 29 age group and most deaths in the 80 and up age group. So far, there have been deaths in all age groups except the 0 to 9 age group.

• Age 0-9: 5,629 cases, 0 deaths
• Age 10-19: 15,153 cases, 1 death
• Age 20-29: 31,869 cases, 7 deaths
• Age 30-39: 26,193 cases, 29 deaths
• Age 40-49: 23,514 cases, 88 deaths
• Age 50-59: 21,402 cases, 227 deaths
• Age 60-69: 14,040 cases, 523 deaths
• Age 70-79: 7,476 cases, 838 deaths
• Age 80 and up: 6,632 cases, 1,574 deaths
• Not reported: 1,274 cases, 4 deaths

The seven-day positive average of PCR tests in Virginia is 4.9 percent as of Oct. 2. The regional averages are 4.4 percent in the northern region, 4.7 percent in the central and eastern regions, 5 percent in the northwest region and 6.4 percent in the southwest region. There have been 2,154,168 PCR tests completed as of Tuesday, an increase of 14,177 from Monday.

COVID-19 hospitalizations stand at 926 statewide. That includes 249 in the eastern region, 210 in the central region, 196 in the northern region, 163 in the southwest region and 108 in the northwest region. According to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, the current hospitalizations include 219 in the intensive care units and 104 on ventilators.

Ventilator use stands at 21 percent among all Virginia hospital patients, and ICU occupancy is at 78 percent. There are no hospitals reporting difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment in the next 72 hours. According to the association, 18,112 COVID-19 total patients have been discharged from hospitals.

Here are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area between Monday and Tuesday:

• Alexandria: 3,932 cases, 327 hospitalizations, 71 deaths; increase of five cases and one death
• Arlington County: 4,068 cases, 508 hospitalizations, 152 deaths; increase of 11 cases and one hospitalization
• Fairfax County: 21,414 cases, 2,181 hospitalizations, 592 deaths; increase of 57 cases, two hospitalizations and two deaths
• Fairfax City: 140 cases, 14 hospitalizations, eight deaths; increase of one case
• Falls Church: 72 cases, 13 hospitalizations, seven deaths; no changes
• Loudoun County: 7,026 cases, 441 hospitalizations, 126 deaths; increase of 39 cases and four hospitalizations
• Manassas: 1,954 cases, 130 hospitalizations, 24 deaths; increase of four cases
• Manassas Park: 616 cases, 55 hospitalizations, eight deaths; no changes
• Prince William County: 12,811 cases, 931 hospitalizations, 208 deaths; increase of 28 cases and three hospitalizations
• Fredericksburg: 553 cases, 50 hospitalizations, five deaths; increase of one hospitalization
• Spotsylvania County: 2,195 cases, 136 hospitalizations, 46 deaths; increase of four cases
• Stafford County: 2,081 cases, 161 hospitalizations, 18 deaths; increase of nine cases

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