October 28, 2020
To the Fairfax County Community,

The 2020 November election is less than a week away. I'm excited by the turnout we have seen. As of last night, over 301,000 ballots have been cast in Fairfax County. This is about 53% of the total number of votes cast in 2016. I requested my ballot by mail and returned it to a drop box at the Fairfax County Government Center. Do you know when, where, and how you will cast your ballot this year? For everything you need to know about voting, be sure to check the Fairfax County Office of Elections website. Below, I also include some new information you might find helpful.

On a different note, I would like to congratulate our former Chair of the Fairfax County Board, Sharon Bulova, who has been recognized by the American Public Transportation Association for her leadership and commitment to public transit in our region. Learn more about the award here.

Finally, Halloween is this Saturday. I hope you are able to celebrate safely. The County has guidelines on low, moderate, and high risk activities that you can read here. As always however, be sure to wear a mask!

See below for the full October 28 edition of my newsletter. For COVID-19 resources mentioned in past newsletters, visit my website. If you have a friend who would like to sign up for this newsletter, they can do so here.
Election
  • As a reminder, a few weeks ago, I published an FAQ for voting this year. Please feel free to review it here.

Key Updates

  • On Thursday, Oct. 29, and Friday, Oct. 30, early voting hours will be extended. New hours are from 11am-7pm at all satellite early voting locations. Government Center hours will remain 8am-7pm on Thursday and Friday. Hours on Saturday have not changed.
  • The last day to vote early in-person is October 31.
  • The deadline has passed to apply for a mail-in ballot.
  • On the Virginia Department of Elections website you can apply for a mail-in ballot for future elections, which has caused confusion. If you apply now, you will not receive a ballot for the Nov. 3 election, so please don't apply for a mail-in ballot.
  • If you didn't apply for a ballot by Oct. 23, you must now come in-person until Oct. 31 or on Election Day.
  • Returning your mail-in ballot.
  • If you still need to return your mail-in ballot, do so as soon as possible. If you need help filling out your ballot, detailed instructions are here.
  • If you would like your ballot to arrive to the Office of Elections by Election Day, I do not recommend you return via the USPS.
  • Instead, I recommend you return it to a ballot drop-off box, which are available during the hours the polls are open at every early voting satellite location and at every precinct on Election Day (from 6am-7pm).
  • There’s no need to wait in line and a poll worker will attend each box at all times. 
  • There is also one 24-hour drop-box outside of the Fairfax County Government Center that is monitored by a security camera.
  • Ways to vote
  • In-person early through Oct. 31
  • Returning your mail-in ballot to a ballot drop box or by mail (again, this is not recommended).
  • In-person on Election Day. Every precinct will be open.
  • More information can be found here.

Voter Identification

  • All voters casting a ballot in-person must be able to show one form of identification.
  • If you do not have one with you, you may instead sign a statement that confirms you are who you claim to be.
  • A list of acceptable forms of identification can be found here.
  • Photo IDs are no longer required in Virginia.

Voter Safety and Intimidation

  • Should you feel unsafe at the polls, we recommend that you immediately call Fairfax County Police Department’s non-emergency number, at 703-691-2131 or 9-1-1.
  • Guns are banned inside every polling place—whether it is a county-owned building, school, or privately owned building. 
  • Authorized poll watchers are allowed by Virginia law — but they must present a written authorization form signed by a county, district, or state party chair or candidate. Only properly authorized poll watchers will be allowed inside the polls.
  • More on the above can be found here.
  • According to Attorney General Herring - voter intimidation is a violation of state and federal law. You can read his legal opinion here.
COVID-19
  • Our data and case numbers are looking good, but this disease is a marathon, not a sprint.
  • The virus is still with us and we can only continue to protect ourselves and our loved ones through social distancing, mask wearing, hand washing, and staying home when sick.
Fairfax County Percent Positive COVID-19 Cases
Percent Positives Tests

  • Since the week of September 13, the COVID-19 positivity in Fairfax County has remained below 5%.
  • During the week of October 11, the percent positivity was 3.57%.
Fairfax County Hospitalizations
Hospitalizations

  • Hospitalizations for COVID-related illness remain low with a steady trend.
  • Single day spikes in hospitalizations can be observed and are attributable to retrospective data cleaning. 
Testing

  • Since early July, testing totals have remained above 10,000 tests per week among Fairfax Health District residents.
  • 12,097 tests have been reported that were collected during the week of October 11.

Contact Tracing

  • As of October 21, 339 of 404 contract COVID response staff have been hired. 
  • Additional cohorts will occur as necessary to fill vacancies and address response needs.

Hospital Beds and Intensive Care

  • Overall available hospital beds were at 24%. This is a 2% increase from the October 5 report.
  • A fluctuating trend averaging near 25% in available adult critical care beds has been observed. 

Personal Protective Equipment

  • PPE for hospitals appears to continue to be adequate.
  • PPE for outpatient/private practice/long term care facilities continues to be a challenge. 

COVID-19 and Close Contact

  • COVID-19 spreads easily and the more contact you have with someone with COVID-19, the more at risk you are of contracting it. 
  • Close contact is defined as: 
  • You were within 6 feet of someone who has COVID-19 for a total of 15 minutes or more. This interaction can be at one time or accumulated over the time the person was infectious.  
  • You provided care at home to someone who is sick with COVID-19.
  • You had direct physical contact with the person (hugged or kissed them).
  • You shared eating or drinking utensils.
  • They sneezed, coughed, or somehow got respiratory droplets on you.
  • If you were within 6 feet for 15 minutes of someone who tested positive for COVID-19, you are considered a contact, even if you were both wearing face masks.
  • As a close contact, you must self-quarantine and monitor for symptoms for 14 days.
  • You should also consider getting a COVID-19 test 5-7 days after the exposure, but you need to quarantine for the 14 days even if that result is negative.
  • People who are exposed to a contact of a COVID-19 case, rather than the case themselves are called “secondary contacts” or “contacts of contacts.” Because the person they are exposed to is well and is not known to be infected, they are not deemed to be at significantly elevated risk.  
  • The person who had close contact with the COVID-19 case needs to quarantine; the secondary contact does not need to self-quarantine, but should closely monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms.
Health
Common Health Questions:

  • People with COVID-19 have a wide range of symptoms reported - ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure. You might experience:
  • Fever or chills
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or body aches
  • Headache
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Sore throat
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Continue to follow the health guidelines:
  • Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer if that isn't an option (especially when in public places)
  • Cough and sneeze into your sleeve
  • Don't touch your face
  • Social distance
  • What it means to social distance, self-isolate, and quarantine.
  • The CDC recommends wearing non-medical masks to slow the spread of COVID-19. It is now required in Virginia.
  • The New York Times (access to COVID-19 content is free) speaks with infectious disease experts, aerosol scientists, and microbiologists to find out if COVID-19 can land on your clothing, hair, shoes, and mail.

Resources:

  • Fairfax County Health Department
  • To view the number of cases in Fairfax County this page is updated at noon daily.
  • Visit the County site on COVID-19, Health Department Website, and see their FAQs.
  • To view multilingual health materials visit the County's Language Portal.
  • Sign up for text message alerts: text FFXCOVID to 888777. Para inscribirse, textear FFXCOVIDESP a 888777.
  • Call the Health Department from 9am-7pm weekdays and 9:30am-5pm on weekends: 703-267-3511
  • Email: [email protected]. This account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8am-8pm.
  • Inova has a helpful FAQ.
We recognize that we are in very trying times, but I hope you see in these newsletters that positive change has occurred over the last several months.

As I often say, we are truly lucky to live in Fairfax County where we have the resources to overcome challenges and a community who rises to the occasion.

Jeffrey C. McKay
Contact the Office

[email protected] | 703.324.2321 |