On March 6, 2020, the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health sent Health Update #165 to health care providers, hospitals and local health departments. At that time, West Virginia had no confirmed COVID-19 cases. Community spread was found in a growing number of countries and in parts of the United States, and the state expected the virus to arrive.
Main points
- People were asked to take routine steps against respiratory viruses: cover coughs and sneezes, wash hands and stay home when sick.
- On March 4, 2020, the CDC widened its criteria for a person under investigation (PUI) to include more patients with symptoms.
- Public health testing focused on people with a likely exposure, such as travel from a place with spread or contact with a case, and symptoms. Providers arranged this testing through the local health department.
- A person with suspected COVID-19 who waited for test results was told to self-isolate, wear a mask in public and call ahead before a medical visit.
- Nursing homes and assisted living facilities were an area of special concern, after an outbreak at a care facility in Washington State.
Care and testing
Providers were told to identify suspected patients on arrival, put a surgical mask on them and move them to an exam room away from other patients. Clinicians were urged to test for other causes, such as flu, first. A patient who tested positive for another respiratory germ was seen as unlikely to have COVID-19 at that time.
Commercial lab tests for COVID-19 were expected soon. Once they were available, providers were told to test more widely. For a COVID-19 test, the state asked for one nose swab and one throat swab, plus a sputum sample from patients with a productive cough.
Reporting
COVID-19 was now a Category 1 reportable disease in West Virginia. Providers had to report suspected and confirmed cases to the local health department at once.
See also the earlier Health Alert #164 and the later Health Alert/Update #166.
This guidance is from March 2020. It is kept here as a record and is not current advice. Check current guidance from the CDC or your doctor.