The Greater Greenbrier COVID-19 Task Force met Tuesday, October 13, via conference call and reports the following information.
HEALTH DEPARTMENT. Greenbrier County has 148 total positive cases, 3 suspect cases, 1 probable case, 130 recovered cases, 18 active cases, 0 hospitalized, and 4 deaths. Dr. Morrison, our county health officer, strongly urges mask usage. Our cases are up, our mask usage is down, and that’s a recipe for problems in the future. Lead by example and be vigilant.
DRIVE THRU FLU CLINIC. This Thursday, October 15, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. you can get a drive-thru flu shot at the State Fairgrounds. (Both the regular and high dosage flu shots will be available.) The same billing methods will be used as in the office. Insurance will be billed. There are discounts for folks without insurance. For example, an adult without insurance will be charged $18 and children will generally be much less.
GREENBRIER COUNTY SCHOOLS. We are seeing a steady increase in elementary students moving from remote to in-person learning. Thanks to everyone for working together to make this possible! Also last week, we met with our secondary schools to talk about challenges they face. We will continue to be in touch with them to discuss potential adjustments as we the semester progresses.
GVMC. The hospital has a new visitor policy in place which is aligned with the school map. For detailed info, visit www.gvmc.com.
RCB CLINIC. Please be cautious as it’s flu season. Our mobile clinic is open for adults from 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. and for children from 1-430 p.m.
RAINELLE MEDICAL. We are having a flu vaccine clinic at our main clinic in Rainelle until 5 p.m. Additional flu vaccine clinics will be available in the coming weeks. The school-based health clinic behind Greenbrier Easy is a community site. It is open five days a week (7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.) year-round for all patients, not just students. We now have a psychiatrist as part of our behavioral health team at the Lewisburg office.
COMMITTEE ON AGING. We are participating in the governor’s summer feeding program still into the fall. These meals (five days worth) can be picked up once a week. We also have vouchers for farmer’s markets available for seniors. If you have questions, you can call the office at 304-392-5138. We continue to provide in-home services, Meals on Wheels, and meals to go for our senior citizens. Medical transport continues as well for those we need it. The state is working on a reopening plan for seniors centers like ours, and we are awaiting that guidance.
FAMILY REFUGE CENTER. Thus far, we have not had any cases at our shelter. We continue to keep safety protocols in place to promote safety for residents and staff. Please remember that survivors of domestic violence are twice as likely to commit suicide as others, so please check in on survivors you know to ensure they’re doing okay.
SUICIDES/OVERDOSES. In the wake of reports about increases in suicide and overdose attempts locally, we are shoring up our resource guide and gathering information for the public so folks know where they can go for help. Look for that this week from the Task Force.
Submitted by Senator Stephen Baldwin on behalf of the Task Force.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.