Photo by Shelley Hanson
People hold up signs in protest of WVU Medicine’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate Sunday near WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital. WVU Medicine has announced that all employees must be vaccinated by Oct. 31, unless they are granted a medical exception.
The Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department warned this past week that COVID-19 transmission numbers would continue climbing at a dangerous rate. The latest numbers the department announced Sunday afternoon bear that out.
According to the WOCHD, there was one COVID-related death and 164 new cases from Aug. 22 to Sunday. That new case total is the most in the last four weeks, and a significant jump from the beginning of that period.
The department announced 54 new cases for the week ending Aug. 8, 96 new cases for the week ending Aug. 15, and 145 new cases for the week ending Aug. 22.
Of the 164 new cases announced this past week, 48 are with people under age 18.
There are 11 cases of the delta variant in Ohio County, 86 cases of the alpha variant and two cases of the gamma variant.
Meanwhile on Sunday, a few dozen people stood at the corner of Washington Avenue and Mt. de Chantal Road near WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital to protest the vaccine mandate WVU Medicine announced earlier this week. According to WVU Medicine, all of its employees must be fully vaccinated from COVID-19 by Oct. 31.
This came after the Food and Drug Administration gave full approval to the Pfizer version of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Douglass Harrison, president and CEO of WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital, said in a statement Sunday that vaccinations are the best way for the hospital to remain able to help patients.
“We respect people’s rights to express their feelings and opinions on this topic, but a public health crisis demands a public health response,” Harrison said. “Our providers are on the frontlines caring for the people in this community; we cannot have them sidelined due to COVID as doing so jeopardizes patient care. The FDA-approved vaccine, which hundreds of millions of Americans have received, is safe and effective.”
The WOCHD will hold vaccination clinics from 9-11 a.m. and 1-3 p.m. today through Friday at the department’s headquarters at 1500 Chapline St. in Wheeling. There also will be a special clinic Wednesday from 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. at West Liberty University’s R. Emmett Boyle Conference Center/ASRC.
It also will hold free testing at the former Ohio Valley Medical Center campus at 2000 Eoff St. in Wheeling, today through Friday from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
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