Governor Northam will ask the General Assembly, when it reconvenes April 22, to approve a plan to move May's local and special elections to November. Northam has issued an executive order to push June's Congressional primaries back two weeks to June 23. The General Assembly will also have to take up a new state budget bill due to projected revenue shortfalls.
Northam says the state continues to work hard to find supplies of personal protection equipment (PPE) for Virginia's healthcare workers. Northam says no Virginia hospital has run out of PPE, but they worry they won't have enough, especially as cases continue to surge.
The Governor says Northern Virginia and the greater Washington, DC area has the potential to develop into a new "hot spot" for coronavirus cases. So far, 45% of Virginia's 3,645 cases have been in the Northern Virginia area.
The Virginia Department of Health will start collecting race and ethnicity data on patients tested for coronavirus. State Health Commissioner, Dr. M. Norman Oliver, said his department has that information for fewer than 50% of Virginia's cases so far. Having the data will help to make sure communities of color are receiving important information and adequate care.
Dr. Oliver also says the Virginia Department of Health continues to work closely with long-term care facilities across the state to increase testing to identify and isolate positive patients after 32 residents at one Henrico County facility died.
More on this story from our media partner, ABC 13 - WSET.