The debate over whether to wear face masks to combat the spread of the coronavirus steered much of the discussion during a virtual town hall in the Eastern Panhandle Wednesday night. The Jefferson County Commission hosted the event with local medical professionals.
The aim of the event, attended by more than 50 people, was to educate and answer questions from the region experiencing the highest number of positive coronavirus cases in West Virginia.
Callers asked questions on a wide variety of topics, such as contact tracing, antibody tests, immunity and vaccines, but one issue came up frequently – whether cloth face masks should be mandated or continue to be voluntary, and how they help against the virus.
Gov. Jim Justice has repeatedly urged West Virginians to wear a mask while out in public but has not made it a requirement as some states and U.S. cities have done. He said Thursday in a virtual press briefing that he may institute a measure next week as state cases continue to rise.
Panelists did not say whether masks should be mandated in West Virginia, but Eastern Panhandle health officer Dr. Terrence Reidy did point to evidence that shows wearing a simple cloth mask while out in public does help protect others by limiting the spread of COVID-19.
“If I cough, if I sneeze,” Reidy said, “it’s going to greatly decrease the chance of spreading, if I happen to have the virus.”
As cases of the virus spike in some states, one caller asked whether West Virginia might experience another shut down as it did in March when Justice issued his stay-at-home order.
Panelist Dr. David Baltierra, interim chair of Family Medicine in Berkeley County under WVU Medicine East, said masks are key if West Virginians don’t want to see another statewide shut down.
“The masks actually keep you going,” said Baltierra. “And so, it’s a way to keep not having to close everything down.”
A month ago, the Shepherdstown Town Council passed a resolution strongly encouraging businesses in town to require face masks of customers.
Last week, the Harpers Ferry Town Council followed Shepherdstown’s example and passed a similar resolution.
On Tuesday, the Shepherdstown Town Council passed another resolution calling on the governor to require masks in public places throughout the state.
Berkeley County leads the state in positive case numbers with more than 440 confirmed. Its neighbor, Jefferson County, has confirmed more than 220 cases of the virus.
To-date, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reports that more than 3,000 cases of the virus have been identified in West Virginia, and at least 93 people have died.
High schools throughout the United States and in West Virginia have had to reimagine graduation for the Class of 2020. Many have already had drive-through, or drive by, graduations, some have done virtual ones, and others hold out hope to also have some sort of traditional ceremony later this summer.
For about 18,000 high school seniors in West Virginia, the final semester of their student career was turned upside down because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“You got those last couple months taken away from you. We didn’t realize we were never going back,” said Oak Hill High School senior Marcayla King. “We didn’t think that we weren’t ever going to see each other again, or at least until graduation … We couldn’t use those last couple months to spend time and make memories and stuff.”
Schools across the state are trying to get creative: Some schools asked students and their family members to drive up to a designated location to receive a diploma in cap and gown and snap a picture or two.
Ripley High School in Jackson County held a parade for its 2020 graduates, announcing their names and future plans on a loudspeaker on the main drag Downtown.
And King’s high school, like some others in West Virginia, had a drive-through graduation. School officials personally delivered all diplomas to everyone’s house. And the school plans to have a traditional graduation ceremony outside later this summer.
“They’re going to have us seated six feet apart, and they’re going to broadcast it live and stuff, too, so like, parents can hear it and see it,” King said.
Credit Wikimedia Commons
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Wikimedia Commons
At the end of March, the West Virginia Department of Education created a Graduation Task Force to survey all 55 county school boards and figure out what a 2020 graduation in a pandemic could look like.
“Our goal with the task force was to really pay attention to what people wanted to do with their senior graduations,” said Jan Barth, assistant superintendent of schools, division of teaching and learning. “And we were trying to figure out ways to make sure that they had a face to face graduation if the pandemic would allow for that.”
Barth, who’s also a member of the task force, said the consensus from the beginning was to hope and plan for something traditional later in the summer. And she said the majority of high schools in West Virginia are doing that.
“I think a lot of people got good ideas about how to do it as traditionally as they possibly can, within the guidelines of the CDC requirements and the governor’s guidelines,” she said.
Those guidelines include social distancing, wearing masks and gloves, and having hand sanitizer available.
But these guidelines aren’t mandatory, and Barth said how the graduations were shaped was ultimately decided on by the local county school boards and school districts.
Credit Liz McCormick / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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West Virginia Public Broadcasting
A staff member reaches into a vehicle to deliver a diploma at Martinsburg High School’s drive-through graduation on May 26, 2020. The majority of faculty and staff did not wear protective equipment to combat the coronavirus.
During some of the recent drive-through graduations, not every school followed these guidelines to the letter.
Take Martinsburg High School in Berkeley County.
During its drive-through graduation, many students teared up or cheered as they got out of their vehicles. Family members looked on from their cars taking photos and honking horns. Teachers stood together up the street waving the school colors and hitting cowbells.
“We wanted to celebrate the students on the day they would have graduated,” said Principal Trent Sherman.
But something was missing from almost all of the staff members — protective gear to fight the coronavirus — including Principal Sherman, who shook hands with nearly every student while not wearing gloves or a mask.
Credit Liz McCormick / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Teachers stand together up the street to cheer students as they drive by during Martinsburg High School’s drive-through graduation on May 26, 2020.
Before the event, Sherman said he didn’t have any health concerns for the evening, because the area was open and outside.
“We got open air, “ he said, “it’s nice out here; a little bit warm, but I think it will be good.”
And Martinsburg High School wasn’t alone in these lax practices.
Jan Barth said she was aware that some schools weren’t following guidelines strictly. She said her team provided all manner of guidelines for schools to follow, but at the end of the day — they’re only guidelines.
“This is not state code. It’s not state policy. It’s a local school district decision and they have all the information they need,” she said. “They had the social guidance information that they needed from the governor’s office.”
Credit Liz McCormick / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Some staff members at Martinsburg High School did wear face coverings during the drive-through graduation on May 26, 2020.
Since early May, Gov. Jim Justice has been slowly reopening West Virginia’s economy. And while the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources says we remain below the case rate that would require the state to start closing again, there are still new cases of COVID-19 being discovered every day across the state.
In Berkeley County, where Martinsburg High is located, coronavirus testing has recently become more available to the public, and the number of positive cases has grown from roughly 25 per week to between 40 and 50 new cases each week. That’s according to Dr. Terrence Reidy, health officer for the Berkeley-Morgan County Health Department and the Jefferson County Health Department.
Berkeley County has also seen the highest number of positive coronavirus cases in the state.
“There’s a lot of misinformation out there,” said Dr. Reidy over Skype. “That either the masks aren’t important, or I don’t have to worry about it, or that this is not a real virus, and it’s not really deadly. And that’s just not true.”
Reidy cautioned that as things continue to reopen, the way we interact with one another must change to limit the spread of the virus.
Reidy acknowledges that social change is hard, but he said if people don’t make the effort to take precautions, things will only get worse — especially in the Eastern Panhandle.
“To me, this is still the first wave coming in from Baltimore and Washington,” he said. “It’s not so much the wave, as the tide coming in. We know that every week or so they’re going to be more and more cases. And it may change a little bit, but with time it’s going to increase.”
As some high schools in West Virginia begin moving forward with traditional graduations, state officials are urging staff and students to be conscientious of others, to follow social distancing guidelines, and to wear a mask when inside a public space or when in close proximity to others.
Speaking at a press briefing Thursday, Gov. Jim Justice said state officials are closely watching the situation in the Eastern Panhandle.
“Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan Counties are counties that we are watching nonstop,” Justice said. “You know, they’re probably the most exposed counties from the standpoint of all the stuff from DC to Virginia.”
State health officer Dr. Cathy Slemp said while the numbers are higher in Berkeley County, the percent positivity of cases is staying fairly consistent.
“What we’re looking at … is both the level of disease and trends, or changes in disease,” Slemp explained. “So, we’re seeing higher levels of disease, but it’s been staying kind of steady along that path.”
But despite higher levels in the Eastern Panhandle, the state is moving forward with reopening plans. On Friday, casinos and movie theaters are set to reopen statewide.
Health officer for the Berkeley-Morgan County Health Department and the Jefferson County Health Department Dr. Terrence Reidy said in an interview over Skype that for the past few weeks, Berkeley County on average, sees about 25 new cases each week — but recently that’s increased to between 40 and 50 a week.
The region has also recently increased access to coronavirus testing.
“The hope had been that people would have understood by this point what they need to do to decrease the risk of infection,” Reidy said. “And we’re seeing that that’s not happening. We’re seeing it both in the numbers of the rising cases and the activities of people getting together and not doing the social distancing or wearing masks; the simple things that do make a difference.”
He cautions entities and residents in the Eastern Panhandle to slow down as things reopen and be mindful. He said just because reopening can happen doesn’t necessarily mean it should yet, and businesses should not operate in the same way as they did prior to the virus outbreak.
He adds that residents should take all necessary precautions, such as wearing a mask in public spaces and to still consider using curbside options at restaurants, grocery stores and other businesses when possible.
The governor’s office hasn’t said whether it will slow reopening in the Eastern Panhandle region.
At least 82 people in West Virginia have died from the virus, and 2,113 have tested positive, according to state health officials Friday morning.
The coronavirus pandemic continues to be the top public health concern in the nation.
The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reported early Thursday morning 12 new cases, bringing the total positive case count in West Virginia to 51.
But what about other public health needs?
“We can’t forget about treatment of everything else, because most of what people are going to die from is not the coronavirus, it’s other problems,” said Dr. Terrence Reidy, health officer for the Berkeley-Morgan County Health Department and the Jefferson County Health Department in the Eastern Panhandle. “Whether it’s heart attacks or appendicitis or regular old pneumonia.”
But balancing responding to the coronavirus and addressing ongoing public health needs such as family planning or the opioid epidemic will be a challenge, Reidy said.
“Most of my conversations on this matter have been recognizing that this coronavirus is going to outstrip all other phone calls and all other requests for services. So, many of our basic things are being put on hold,” he said. “We’re having to prioritize by what things can’t wait.”
Things like certain vaccinations or elective surgeries.
But he said things like emergency care, STD treatments or family planning needs still have to be prioritized.
However, the state’s rural geography may play a pivotal role in helping stop the spread of coronavirus.
“People are not as clustered [here],” he said. “So there are people who are able to pretty much stay away from crowds.”
But he also noted our hospitals, several of which have closed in recent years, may not be ready for a swarm of coronavirus cases.
“It’s hard in a rural area to have experts in some medical areas nearby. Recognizing the problems could be difficult.”
Reidy said the best thing to do is to treat everyone with respect, be patient, stay calm and stay home.
“We need to be civil and forgiving of each other. Not the blame game of why wasn’t this done and why wasn’t this done. Just look around; the whole world is suffering from this. So we need to treat each other properly.”
Keep up with West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s latest coronavirus coverage here.
