Issue 56
Friday, March 12, 2021
Prince William County
Dear Neighbors,

March is a month of changes. The season will soon officially change to Spring. Many of you may have already changed into short sleeves during this week of warmer weather. In the last article below, we share an important change happening this weekend.

More importantly, a new change in our statewide mitigation measures went into effect on March 1, the same week our high school students had the option of attending in-person learning (issue 54). A additional large vaccination site was opened in our county, a third vaccine was approved, and more pharmacies began administering vaccines (issue 55). In an article below, in addition to other changes, you'll learn about you will also learn about new changes for eligibility to be vaccinated.

While change has often been maligned, after a year of days seeming to blur into each other, I am welcoming changes. I am also looking forward to more as we continue to move closer to being on the other side of the pandemic.

In Service,
Chair Ann Wheeler
Vaccination Updates
New Scheduling Process
The Prince William Health District (PWHD) is currently using PrepMod to schedule vaccine appointments. If you are unable to use the internet to schedule your appointment, please call 703-872-7759 and select option 3 for scheduling assistance.

If you already scheduled your first dose, you will be contacted by the PWHD call center to schedule your second dose. If you do not receive a call from the PWHD within 3 days of your second vaccination due date, contact the call center at 703-872-7759.
The PrepMod Process

When it is your turn to schedule an appointment:
  1. Individuals will receive an email, phone call, or text message from the PWHD Call Center.
  2. Individuals will be asked if you they available for a particular day and willing to accept the vaccine administered at that clinic site.
  3. Individuals will receive a follow-up notification with their link to the scheduling process. Individuals should not share this link with your family members or friends, as doing so will forfeit their allocated appointment.
  4. After selecting an appointment slot, individuals will have 15 minutes to complete the scheduling process.
Continued Expanded Eligibility
For the second week in a row, vaccine eligibility has been expanded to more groups in Phase 1b. The new groups now eligible are:

  • Food & Agriculture
  • Manufacturing
  • Grocery Store Workers

These groups will be placed in line behind previously eligible groups in Phase 1b that have yet to receive their vaccination.
New County Data Dashboard
The PWC Emergency Operations Center has worked with the Prince William Health District (PWHD) to create a PWHD COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard teeming with lots of detailed information. The information provided is gathered from the Virginia Department of Health's publicly accessible data feeds and includes data from hospitals, the PWHD, medical practices, other community health providers, and pharmacies. While the dashboard provides real-time data, please note most of its sources are updated daily, generally by noon. If you hover your cursor over the individual cells, you can expand them by clicking on the right top corner icon that appears. Vaccines received and administered include first and second doses.
If you have not yet pre-registered for your vaccination, please do so through Virginia's Statewide System. You can also contact the statewide call center (877) 829-4682 (VAX-IN-VA) 7-days a week from 8 am to 8 pm. The PrepMod system described above will then be used to schedule your appointment when it is time for you to receive the vaccine.

If the Virginia Department of Health sends you a request to verify your information and update your record, please do so following the steps as outlined. If your pre-registration record is missing important information, your appointment may be delayed. Verifying your information and updating your record will not change your pre-registration date or reference code.
If You Need Help Getting to Your Appointment
Updated Guidelines
After You're Fully Vaccinated
The CDC issued guidance on March 8 about what people can do when they are fully vaccinated (which occurs two weeks after their final vaccine dose). The guidance notes that because public health researchers are still learning how vaccines will affect the spread of COVID-19, even people who are fully vaccinated should keep taking precautions in public places like wearing masks, staying 6 feet apart from others, and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.
Visiting Residents in Healthcare Facilities
The CDC and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have updated their recommendations for healthcare settings, including but not limited to nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

Following these, the Virginia Department of Health recommends that per the CDC’s updated guidance, indoor visitation could be permitted for all residents except as noted below:

  • Indoor visitation for unvaccinated residents should be limited solely to compassionate care situations if the COVID-19 county positivity rate is below 10% and more than 70% of residents in the facility are fully vaccinated.

  • Indoor visitation should be limited solely to compassionate care situations for vaccinated and unvaccinated residents in quarantine until they have met criteria for release from quarantine.

  • Facilities experiencing outbreaks should continue to follow guidance from their local health department. Nursing homes should also follow guidance from CMS on when visitation should be paused.

  • Visitors should be counseled about their potential to be exposed to SARS-CoV-2 in the facility if they are permitted to visit.

  • Additional recommendations are outlined by the CDC and CMS.
Vaccine Town Halls
Focusing on the Black Community's Vaccine Questions
On Monday, March 15, at 7 pm, Dr. Alison Ansher, Director of the Prince William Health District, will participate in a virtual town hall with Praise 104.1 FM. The session, “Heart 2 Heart: The COVID Vaccine and Our Community,” will focus on answering questions the black community has about COVID vaccines.

African-American physician, Dr. Briana Walton, Director of Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Maryland Capital Region Health, will also participate. Community activist Carl Armstrong, Director of Operations for Heart 4 The Community Initiative, and Sherrie Johnson, Director of Communications for Prince William County Government, will round out the panel.

Praise 104.1 radio personality Cheryl Jackson will host the one-hour virtual town hall that will air live on Praise 104.1’s Facebook page, the Radio One DC YouTube channel, and PraiseDC.com.
Providing Information to the Hispanic - Latino Community
On Tuesday, March 9, leaders of the System of Health Novant Health UVA, in association with Todos Supermarket, Primera Iglesia Bautista Maranatha, Prince William Chamber Hispanic Council, and Telemundo 44, hosted a virtual Hispanic-Latino Community Town Hall focused on facts and latest information about the ′′COVID-19 Vaccine Data." The recording can be viewed here.
Also available is the video recording (issue 55) in English and Spanish of the Prince William Health District's Town Hall featuring Dr. Alison Ansher, Director of the PWHD, and Dr. Fabian Sandoval, CEO and Research Director of the Emerson Clinical Research Institute. 
COVID-19
Change in Testing Sites
Due to a 70% decrease in testing requests over the last month, PWC has reduced the number of its mobile testing locations from seven to six. Each of the six sites are visited once per week. Please note, this change has not impacted their capacity to complete 200 tests per day. Visit the PWC COVID-19 testing webpage to see the testing locations and times of operation.
Childcare Scholarship Grant Extended
At the Tuesday, March 9, meeting the BOCS issued a directive to continue funding the Childcare Scholarship Program (issue 35) from April 5 through the end of the school year on June 11. Launched last October, funding for the program was made possible through a $2 million grant established by the BOCS from federal CARES Act funds to help families impacted by COVID-19. The $625,500 in additional funding will come from remaining CARES Act funds and provide scholarships for 435 families currently enrolled.
On Thursday, March 11, the Virginia Department of Health announced that the first case of the variant, which first emerged in South Africa, was identified in an adult resident of Northern Virginia who had no history of travel during the exposure period. The variant, has now been identified in 20 cases across Virginia and is associated with increased person-to-person transmission of COVID-19. At this time, there is no evidence that infections with this variant cause more severe disease. There have also been 49 cases in the Commonwealth of another variant first identified in the United Kingdom.

As our public health officials closely monitor the emergence of these variants in our Commonwealth, it is critical we all continue to comply with mitigation measures. This means wearing masks correctly, staying at least six feet from others, avoiding crowds, washing hands often, getting vaccinated for COVID-19 when it is your turn, and staying home if you are infected with COVID-19 or have had close contact to someone with COVID-19.
On Sunday, February 28, Chair Wheeler volunteered at the Muslim Association of Virginia's (MAV) bi-weekly food distribution at Dar Al-Noor. The event was made possible through the work of volunteers and donations from ACTS, Prince William Food Rescue, ICNAVA Relief, and the Dar Al-Noor community members. Watch a brief video of her onsite interview with MAV to learn more.
Vaccination and COVID-19 Resources
BOCS Upcoming Meeting
Tuesday, March 9
at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm

For Public Comment Time options,
visit SpeakUp! Prince William.
Remote speakers must sign-up by
5:00 pm on Monday, March 8.
In-person speakers can sign up at the meeting.
As part of the Fiscal Year 2022 Proposed Budget process (issue 53), the BOCS heard presentations on Judicial Services from their various agencies and the Juvenile Services Center from the Department of Social Services during their March 9 meeting. An overview can be found here. The Judicial Services presentation can be found here and the Juvenile Services Center presentation can be found here.
An Opportunity to Participate on Equity
As shared in issue 54, the Racial and Social Justice Commission (issue 37) inviting community members to participate remotely or in-person during the public comment time at their next meeting on Thursday, March 18, at 6:30 pm in the Board Chambers at the James J. McCoart Administration Building.

Registration for remote participation is open until 5:00 pm on March 17. Members of the public who attend the meeting in-person will be expected to comply with COVID-19 safety measures, including being physically spaced at least 6 feet apart, both in the Board chambers and the atrium.
Honoring the Best in PWC
Prince William Chamber of Commerce's Business Awards was held on Thursday, February 25. These annual awards recognize excellence in business, innovative practices, outstanding contributions to the community, and organizations that stand out among their peers.
On Tuesday, March 9, Chair Wheeler participated in presenting Prince William Chamber of Commerce's award for Innovative Practice or Partnership of the Year to the PWC Department of Economic Development for its ELEVATE workforce development program. You can see all the categories and winners in the article below.
Pictured from left to right are Christina M. Winn, Executive Director of the PWC Department of Economic Development, Chair Wheeler, and Debbie Jones, President and CEO of the Prince William Chamber of Commerce.
Categories and Winners
You can learn about the finalists here and watch a video of the event here.
Overall Award Categories:

Industry-Specific Awards:


These categories are rotated on an annual basis to showcase members in varying industry sectors.
Community Service Awards Categories:


Each award is accompanied by a check for $1,000 to continue the winner’s work. These are the only Business Awards that the Not-for-Profit organization does not have to be a member of the Chamber.
2021 Charles J. Colgan Visionary Award

David Brickley (see article below)

Awarded to an individual who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership, including but not limited to their own organization. This individual should be known as an innovator, a great partner, a visionary, and an advocate for their community and beyond.
People’s Choice Award
A Deserving Honor
David Brickley's 2021 Charles J. Colgan Visionary Award at February's PWC's Chamber of Commerce's Business Awards recognized his lifetime of service. A longtime Prince William County resident and retired attorney, he previously served in the Virginia House of Delegates for 22 years as the longest continuously serving state delegate. He also served Prince William in several significant roles, including as the Civic Association President, the PWC Assistant County Executive, transportation champion, and national outdoors leader.
While in the General Assembly, Brickley chaired the State Parks subcommittee and was the legislative sponsor for creating Leesylvania State Park. He was also the legislative sponsor, co-founder, and Chairman of the Virginia Railway Express, Virginia’s commuter rail system. Following his legislative service, in 2001, he served as the Director of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation which was awarded the National Gold Medal Award for the Best State Park System in America.
 Five days after the tragedy on September 11, 2001, he initiated the Mid-Atlantic Governors’ Conference on Greenways, Blueways, and Green Infrastructure. At the end of the 4-day conference, Brickley proposed creating a “continuously linked multi-purpose, non-motorized trail offering varied opportunities including walking, hiking, cycling and handicap accessibility as an active memorial honoring those who gave their lives upholding America’s values of freedom and democracy.” From this, the 9/11 National Memorial Trail emerged, which today spans 1,300-miles connecting New York City’s National September 11th Memorial, the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia., and the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Prior to his legislative service, he was a member of the United States Air Force and awarded the Bronze Star for his service in Vietnam. Active in the Boy Scouts for over 40 years, he recently earned their America William T. Hornaday Gold Medal for Distinguished Service to Natural Resource Conservation. First granted in 1915, it is the oldest continuous conservation award in the United States and has only been awarded 62 times.
Do You Have a Question for Dr. Fauci?
Friday, March 19, and Saturday, March 20, the Prince William Health District will be participating in the NBC4 annual Health & Fitness Virtual Expo. The Expo provides an opportunity to hear from leading health care providers, get the latest wellness information, and learn about fitness trends during online demonstrations and discussions. And yes, you can even submit a question in advance for Dr. Fauci. Register and submit your question here.
It's Time to Spring Forward
On Sunday, March 14 (technically at 2:00 am), reset your clocks one hour forward for Daylight Saving Time (DST). Introduced in 1918, following the European model and to better utilize resources during World War I, Congress imposed the Standard Time Act. While it was discontinued nationally after World War I, some states continued the practice. During World War II, new legislation imposed daylight saving time for the entire nation for the entire year. It was repealed on September 30, 1945, but individual states once again imposed their own “standard” time. It was in 1966 that Congress passed legislation setting a standard time.
Want to know more? Check out History.com's "8 Things You May Not Know About Daylight Saving Time." (Teaser: It's 'Saving' not 'Savings')
Ann B. Wheeler was elected Chair At-Large of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors during the 2019 General Election and assumed office on January 1, 2020. Prince William County is located 25 miles south of Washington, D.C., and is the Commonwealth of Virginia’s second-most populous county with approximately 470,000 residents.