Northern Virginia residents and Alexandria officials gathered last night (Monday) for the city’s annual World AIDS Day commemoration to encourage public health education and community testing.
The event featured musical performances by the Northern Virginia World AIDS Day Choir and musician Tony Craddock, a Q&A panel and free HIV testing available afterward. Mayor Alyia Gaskins also read a proclamation acknowledging the day “to show solidarity and strength against HIV stigma.”
The Alexandria Health Department is issuing a warning to residents after a fox spotted near Rosemont over the weekend tested positive for rabies.
The now-deceased fox came into contact with a person and a dog near Rosemont on Sunday, Nov. 9, according to AHD. In a release today (Thursday), the department said it is working with the exposed parties on “safe next steps” and warning of “an increased risk of rabies exposures in the community.”
Alexandria City High School students can get free and confidential sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing at school this week.
The free “Hallo-Screen” event, which is open to all Alexandria teens, will be conducted over the course of two days at the Teen Wellness Center clinics on both ACHS campuses. The testing schedule is below.
The Alexandria Health Department is encouraging residents to get vaccinated and practice healthy habits as cold and flu season approaches, officials announced Tuesday.
As temperatures drop, health officials warn that respiratory illnesses, including influenza, RSV, and COVID-19, typically increase, potentially leading to serious health complications, missed work and school days, and hospitalizations.
Alexandria residents will have the opportunity to clean out their medicine cabinets and safely dispose of unused or expired medications during National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 25, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Alexandria Police Department, Alexandria Sheriff’s Office, and Alexandria Health Department — in cooperation with the Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria — will staff four drop-off locations across the city as part of the Drug Enforcement Agency’s nationwide initiative.
The Alexandria Health Department is looking for volunteers to join community coalitions to create the city’s next five-year Health Improvement Plan.
In the upcoming 2026-2031 plan, AHD will focus on citywide mental wellness, as well as in the Landmark/Van Dorn corridor in the West End and the city’s Arlandria neighborhood. The focus areas were chosen in AHD’s most recent State of Health Report. Each subject matter area will be worked on by a coalition, which will be made up of “Alexandria residents, businesses, faith leaders, community groups, and others who work and spend time here,” according to AHD.
Alexandria’s childhood vaccination rates have fallen to concerning levels, dropping from 95% in 2019 to just 88% last school year for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines, according to new data from an NBC News investigation published Monday.
The decline affects Alexandria City Public Schools’ 16,335 students across 18 schools. It puts the city below the critical 95% vaccination threshold needed for “herd immunity” — the level required to prevent measles outbreaks and stop disease spread within a community.
Health officials issued a rabies alert Friday after a fox in Alexandria’s Del Ray/Rosemont neighborhood tested positive for the virus following contact with a domestic cat.
The Alexandria Health Department said the fox encountered the cat on Monday near a home in the area. The fox died, and officials are working with the cat’s owner on safety measures.
Alexandria residents who traveled through Washington Dulles International Airport on Aug. 12 may have been exposed to measles, according to health officials.
The Virginia Department of Health was notified of a confirmed measles case involving an out-of-state resident who traveled through the airport that day. The potential exposure occurred in the main terminal, at the TSA security checkpoint, in Concourse B and on transportation between the main terminal and Concourse B from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
As summer winds down and the new school year approaches, the Alexandria Health Department is encouraging families to schedule their children’s required immunizations now to avoid the typical back-to-school rush.
Virginia mandates specific vaccines for students entering kindergarten, seventh grade, and 12th grade. These immunizations protect against preventable diseases, including measles, pertussis (also known as whooping cough), and meningitis.
With the 2025-2026 school year just a month away, the Alexandria Health Department is urging parents to get their children’s school-required vaccinations.
“Scheduling vaccine appointments early makes it easier to find an appointment that fits your schedule,” Alexandria Health Department Director Dr. David Rose said, “and vaccines protect our children from getting sick and being sidelined from school and activities later on.”
