WHEELING-OHIO COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT

PRESS RELEASE

Thursday, November 19, 2020 (11:30pm)

Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department is announcing sixty-four (64) new cases of COVID-19 in Ohio County for Thursday, November 19, 2020.  Currently, the health department reports a total of 1255 (one case was transferred) cases, including sixteen (16) deaths. Case surveillance, contact tracing, and monitoring continues for many of the reported cases.  During the community mass testing today (11/19/2020), the health department performed 277 COVID-19 tests on Ohio Valley residents.

Starting Monday, November 16th and running until Saturday, November 21st, the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department will hold free COVID-19 testing clinics at three locations in Ohio County.

Ohio County COVID Testing

November 16-21, 2020, 11am-4pm

Valley Grove Volunteer Fire Department, 355 Fire House Lane, Valley Grove WV

Warwood Fire Station, Station 9, 1301 Richland Avenue

Wheeling Island Fire Department, Station 5, 11 North Wabash Street

The free clinics are for those with or without symptoms and no insurance is needed. Participants need to bring a driver’s license, photo ID or other proof of address. No residency restrictions.  Patients under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. This is a drive-up testing clinic and participants will be tested either in their personal vehicles or at a walk-up location near the testing sites.  This special clinic is being hosted by the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department and the Wheeling-Ohio County Emergency Management Agency. For more information call the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department at (304) 234-3682.

The Health Department is reminding residents that the county is currently ORANGE in the daily WVDHHR County Alert Map.  Travel sports teams are prohibited from participating in games, practices, or other types of competition within counties designated as gold, orange, or red in the alert map.  The restriction does not apply to teams that play in defined, relatively small geographic areas, such as within a single county or a few counties in the state.  In addition, all purely social gatherings are limited to 10 individuals.  The limitation does not apply to any activity, business, or entity that has been deemed essential, such as religious services, weddings, or group meetings, conferences, or other special events held for essential businesses and operations.  Consult your local health department for more details.

Investigation to date indicates that cases are associated with travel, group events including family gatherings, cases at K-12 and higher education centers, and cases with no other risk factor, which can be an indicator of active community spread.  The Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department is monitoring multiple outbreaks among facilities in Ohio County.

Ohio County and Ohio Valley residents are advised to limit public contact, implement social distancing, work at home where possible, wear a face-covering when out in public, indoors, or at work, wash your hands frequently, and contact your personal physician if you become ill with fever, cough, or difficulty breathing.

The Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department is reminding Ohio Valley residents that if you are tested for COVID-19 that you are to remain in home isolation until you receive negative test results.  Individuals who test positive will be contacted by a county health department and receive further instructions in regard to care and monitoring.

If positive, you should restrict activities outside your home, except for getting medical care. Do not go to work, school, or public areas. If you have a medical appointment, call the healthcare provider and tell them that you have or may have COVID-19 prior to arriving at the facility. This will help the healthcare provider’s office take steps to keep other people from getting infected or exposed.

The off-site Wheeling Hospital COVID-19 testing clinic continues operations.  Ohio Valley residents who are interested in being tested at this location should call the on-call number at (304) 221-3995. Testing is also available at Doctor’s Urgent Care, call (304) 232-0725 for more information; MedExpress is also testing for COVID-19, for more information call (304) 242-4228; Wheeling Health Right is offering testing, call (304) 233-9323 for more information.