Virginia Lags Country in Testing

Welcome to today’s edition of the Dogwood Daily. We’ve got a round-up of all of today’s Virginia news coming right up.

But first…

Texas Roadhouse restaurants in Virginia have taken curbside restaurant-ing to a new level, selling ready-to-cook steaks to aid residents affected by grocery store shortages.

Five things you need to know today …

1. Over 600 Cases of Coronavirus in State And Over 7,000 Tested: The Virginia Department of Health has confirmed 604 cases of coronavirus in the state, with 150 new cases since Thursday. These cases are presumptive positive meaning that still need confirmatory testing from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention. The VDH has confirmed 7,337 people tested with 83 people hospitalized. There have been 14 statewide deaths total. WHSV
   
   
2. VCU Converts Resident Hall Into Hospital for Non-COVID-19 Patients- Virginia Commonwealth University has started converting the Honors Residence Hall into a hospital for non-COVID-19 patients, but they failed to notify students that was happening before removing their belongings from the dorms.  Many were unaware of the change until a video of the dorms being cleared went viral on Wednesday. – Dogwood
   
   
3. Northam Bill Review Goes Virtual Due to Virus- Gov. Ralph Northam is reviewing bills from the General Assembly virtually, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. By the end of the week, Northam had acted on 530 of the 1,290 bills from House of Delegates and state Senate. Northam has until 11:59 p.m., April 11 to sign or veto bills, or to recommend revisions to lawmakers. Lawmakers can either choose to accept or deny those revisions. Richmond Times-Dispatch
   
   
4. Virginia Coronavirus Testing is Severely Behind-  In terms of coronavirus testing, Virginia currently ranks 37 out of 50 states and Washington D.C. This could pose a problem in terms of relief the state is able to get, since the number of positive cases appears relatively low. William Petri, the University of Virginia’s vice chair of research, said it is a “huge issue.” –The Virginian Pilot
   
   
5. Advocates Worry for Incarcerated Youths Safety During Coronavirus- The Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice is trying to keep the coronavirus out of Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center, but advocates say more can be done. There are no known cases of COVID-19 at the center, which is located in Chesterfield County. “It is an incredibly high-risk group for the rapid spread of infectious disease,” Valerie Slater, executive director of Reinvest In Supportive Environments for Youth, said. –Richmond Times-Dispatch