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Alexandria City Council to consider adjusting face mask ordinance for everyone

By James Cullum
Walking along the waterfront in Old Town. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

(Updated at 4:30 p.m.) The Alexandria City Council will consider adjusting the city’s face mask ordinance to evolve with Governor Ralph Northam’s executive order, which is continually being amended to loosen statewide coronavirus restrictions.

The ordinance states that all city residents under the age of five years old are required to wear face masks except while exercising, eating and drinking or if they have a verified health condition. The ordinance was approved last September and expires this September.

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COVID-19 update: 40% of residents got first vaccine shot, 29% got second shot

By James Cullum

About 40% of City residents have gotten their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, and nearly 30% have been fully inoculated.

Alexandrians can walk in to get their COVID-19 vaccine, as the city expects 12,650 doses this week, including first and second doses, according to the Alexandria Health Department.

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NOW: Alexandria preparing new face mask ordinance as CDC says fully vaccinated folks don’t need them

By James Cullum
Walking on King Street in Old Town, Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson has asked City staff to prepare a revised face mask ordinance since news broke that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising that anyone who is fully vaccinated no longer needs to wear them.

“Fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear a mask outdoors, except in certain crowded settings and venues,” the CDC said Tuesday. “For the purposes of this guidance, people are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19 (more than) 2 weeks after they have received the second dose in a 2-dose series (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), or (more than) 2 weeks after they have received a single-dose vaccine (Johnson and Johnson (J&J)/Janssen).”

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NEW: Alexandria shifts to open scheduling for COVID-19 vaccine

By James Cullum

Alexandria turned another corner in the fight against COVID-19 on Tuesday, as the city has moved into vaccination open scheduling.

“This is a big moment, as the days of long waiting lists for vaccinations are largely behind us,” Mayor Justin Wilson told ALXnow. “The next phase is a new challenge as we must work to bring doses to those who have not sought them and continue to spread the word that we have three very safe and effective vaccines that are available to Alexandria residents. This is how we get our residents and businesses back to normal.”

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Update: COVID-19 vaccine alert for residents 16+ today

By James Cullum

Three more Alexandria residents have died of COVID-19 since this time last week, as an emergency alert will go out Monday at 10 a.m. to notify anyone 16 and older that they are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

“Virginia will send alerts through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) to participating wireless carriers, which then push the alerts to compatible mobile devices in the area,” according to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.

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Alexandria Health Department pauses Johnson & Johnson vaccinations

By Vernon Miles

Following new concerns about potential side effects, Alexandria and statewide health administrations are pausing all planned Johnson & Johnson vaccinations.

The news comes after the CDC and the FDA released a recommendation to stop using the vaccine after six patients reportedly developed a rare and severe type of blood clot.

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Alexandria getting 11K COVID-19 vaccine doses this week, residents asked to register

By James Cullum

“This does not include additional vaccine supplies from federal programs provided directly to participating pharmacies and Alexandria’s federally qualified health center, Neighborhood Health,” according to AHD.

Residents are encouraged to pre-register with the city to get on the vaccine waitlist at alexandriava.gov/Vaccines or call 703-746-4988 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

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Alexandria aims to adjust vaccination efforts as city moves into next phase

By Vernon Miles

Alexandria is gearing up to move into the next phase of vaccination later this month, and the city’s Health Department is getting ready to launch some new programs and make adjustments to help make getting the shot a little easier.

So far, around 47,434 Alexandrians have been partially vaccinated, and 26,717 have been fully vaccinated. The target goal is 80% of the city vaccinated (106,618 people).

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