The Alexandria Health Department is alerting city residents to recent measles exposures that occurred in Northern Virginia last week.
A preschool-aged child in the region who recently traveled internationally was confirmed to have measles, according to the Virginia Department of Health. The child visited three health care sites across Woodbridge and Falls Church from Jan. 13-18, which AHD notes may have led to potential exposures.
Improving mental health across the city will be in focus in Alexandria’s next Community Health Improvement Plan.
Mental wellness is one of three topics that will be addressed in the city’s new CHIP, AHD announced last week. The topic was selected for further engagement after 47% of 2,020 respondents in the city’s 2025 Community Health Assessment survey selected “mental health” as their top community health issue.
After a reported uptick in flu, COVID-19 and other illnesses in the city, the Alexandria Health Department is recommending the flu shot and and other preventative measures to stay healthy.
Flu-related emergency department visits more than tripled in Alexandria during the last two weeks of December, according to data from the Virginia Department of Health. Alexandria’s current flu vaccination rate is low, sitting at less than 30% of the population, AHD spokesperson Eve Elliott told ALXnow.
Inova Alexandia Hospital has been named one of the top hospitals in the country for maternity care in an annual ranking by U.S. News & World Report.
Alexandria’s hospital at 4320 Seminary Road was joined in the publication’s Fifth Annual 2026 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care list by its sister hospitals, Inova Fair Oaks Hospital and Inova Loudoun Hospital. The facility was recognized as a birthing-friendly hospital, a designation measured by C-section rates in lower-risk pregnancies, severe unexpected newborn complication rates, exclusive breast milk feeding rates and birthing-friendly practices, among other measures.
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 city of Alexandria plans to honor World AIDS Day with an evening of choir performances, testimonies and education next week.
The city’s annual World AIDS Day Commemoration invites residents to remember those lost to HIV/AIDS, celebrate progress made for people at risk or living with HIV/AIDS and stand in solidarity against stigmas surrounding the virus. The event is scheduled from 6:30-8:30 p.m. next Monday, Dec. 1, at the Nannie J. Lee Recreation Center on 1108 Jefferson Street.
An Alexandria man with dementia who wandered more than a mile from his home was recovered by the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office earlier this month.
ASO Lieutenant Victor Ignacio noticed an Alexandria Police Department dispatch for a missing person on Nov. 3, identifying the man as a participant in Project Lifesaver. The program provides free, trackable bracelets for residents at risk of wandering due to conditions like Alzheimer’s or autism.
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.
There’s a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sept. 12 for a new audiologist (ear doctor) office in Old Town.
Northern Virginia Audiology Doctors formally opened their Alexandria Hearing Studio (918 Prince Street) to the public at the end of July. They will hold a ribbon cutting on Friday, Sept. 13, from 2:45 to 3:30 p.m.
City Council has released more than $120,000 in reserve funding to the Alexandria Health Department.
On Tuesday (July 1), Council approved the one-time funding to support the city’s Healthy Homes Action Plan, immigrant and refugee resource programs, and expansion of the ALX Breathes program. AHD lost the funds, which were from a federal COVID-19 grant earlier this year.
The Alexandria Health Department lost dedicated federal COVID-19 grant funding earlier this year, and now the City Council will vote on a proposal for various health initiatives.
AHD is requesting one-time funding of $120,510 from the city to support the city’s Healthy Homes Action Plan for the current fiscal year, in addition to community health outreach, continued resource funding for immigrant and refugee programs, and expansion of the ALX Breathes program. The Healthy Homes program brings together dozens of city organizations to recommend home improvements.
