COVID totals from Sunday, Monday set new all-time 2-day high for Henrico

During the past two days, Henrico County has witnessed its most new confirmed COVID-19 cases during a two-day period since the pandemic began – 299 – according to the Virginia Department of Health. Factor in the number reported Saturday and the county’s three-day total of new cases is 437, resulting from nearly 6,300 PCR testing encounters.

The increase in testing and cases seems to follow the projected path for the days and week post-Thanksgiving, when state officials anticipated a rise in both. Despite the new cases, Henrico has witnessed only one new hospitalization and no new deaths during the past three days, according to the VDH.

Henrico's 7-day positivity percentage continues to increase, reaching 7.9% as of Dec. 3. Henrico has surpassed 171,000 PCR tests, ranking it third among local health districts statewide.

But even as Henrico’s numbers increase, the county is faring better than other regions of the state.

The statewide positivity percentage has grown to 10.8%, and in the most recent White House COVID task force report, published Nov. 29 and obtained by the Center for Public Integrity, officials urged local and state officials to conduct “aggressive impact testing of adults under 40 to rapidly identify those who became infected over Thanksgiving before they spread the virus to more vulnerable individuals, driving another round of hospitalizations and fatalities.”

As of the publication date, the federal government had deployed 151 employees to Virginia to assist with COVID mitigation and treatment efforts, according to the report.

“If state and local policies do not reflect the seriousness of the current situation, all public health officials must alert the state population directly,” the report urged. “It must be made clear that if you are over 65 or have significant health conditions, you should not enter any indoor public spaces where anyone is unmasked due to the immediate risk to your health; you should have groceries and medications delivered.

“If you are under 40, you need to assume you became infected during the Thanksgiving period if you gathered beyond your immediate household.”

The report also urged proactive weekly testing of groups representative of the community, including teachers, community college students, county workers, staff in crowded or congregate settings, hospital personnel and large private sector employers.

– Will Gonzalez contributed to this article