COVID-19 UPDATE: Gov. Justice announces reopening dates for swimming pools, movie theaters, bowling alleys and other places with indoor amusement

Gov. Justice previously announced that limited video lottery retailers, as well as spas and massage businesses, will also be able to resume operations on May 30 as part of the Governor’s Week 5 phase of business reopenings.

Gov. Justice previously announced that casinos will also be able to resume operations on June 5 as part of the Governor’s Week 6 phase of business reopenings.

• Indoor dining at restaurants
• Large/specialty retail stores
• State park campgrounds for in-state residents only (Guidance for ALL campgrounds)
• Hatfield McCoy Trail System
• Outdoor recreation rentals (Kayaks, bicycles, boats, rafts, canoes, ATVs, and similar equipment)
• Outdoor motorsport and powersport racing with no spectators
• Tanning businesses​​
• Whitewater rafting
• Ziplining​
• Indoor malls and similar facilities​

Also today, the executive order requiring out-of-state travelers to self-quarantine was lifted. In accordance with this change, additional guidance documents are available for hotels, motels, condo-hotels, rental properties, and cabins.

As a result, the Governor has ordered the West Virginia National Guard to travel to these two counties immediately to assess the needs of county health officials, to provide them with resources, and to work alongside state medical experts in efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19.

“The National Guard is going to report back to me in the morning,” Gov. Justice said. “It may very well be that we have got to take more stringent guidelines than what we have today there. And, if we do, we’ll do that tomorrow.

“My first and foremost responsibility is to protect you and that’s what I’m going to do. I take that responsibility very seriously,” Gov. Justice continued. “I would urge all West Virginians – especially those in Berkeley and Jefferson counties – you have got to wear a mask when you go out in public.

“We’re doing exactly what I said we were going to do; we’re running to the fire. We’re absolutely going to take care of this to the best of our ability. We can’t just step back and let it go. Because, if we just step back and let it go and do nothing, it’s going to brew into something that’s not going to be good.”

• Cabell County
  • 16th Street Baptist Church (1647 9th Ave., Huntington, WV)
    • Friday, May 22 & Saturday, May 23  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Kanawha County
  • Schoenbaum Family Enrichment Center (1701 5th Ave., Charleston, WV)
    • Friday, May 22 & Saturday, May 23  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Marion County
  • Windmill Park (900 Ogden Ave., Fairmont, WV)
    • Friday, May 22 & Saturday, May 23  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Monongalia County
  • Big Lots (902 Fairmont Rd, Morgantown,  WV)
    • Friday, May 22  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  • WVU Coliseum (3450 Monongahela Blvd., Morgantown, WV)
    • Saturday, May 23  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
    • Saturday, May 23  |  9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

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“Our Department of Education is going to be reaching out to the counties and the superintendents and see if they can come together to find a way to be able to have some form of graduation where these kids and these families are able to come – maybe wearing masks, maybe spreading out all over the place – but they’d be able to see these kids. And our kids deserve it in every way.”

“If children fall behind on their vaccines during this pandemic, we could face a second crisis with an outbreak of vaccine-preventable disease,” Sec. Crouch continued. “Uninsured and other eligible children may receive free vaccines at more than 420 participating provider sites.”
Eligibility requirements for the VFC program (must meet one of the below criteria):

• Medicaid-eligible
• Uninsured
• American Indian or Alaskan Native
• Underinsured (children with insurance which does not cover vaccines)

More information is available at oeps.wv.gov and at 1-800-642-3634.

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Gov. Justice also expressed his thanks to West Virginia State Auditor JB McCuskey and his office for their assistance in evaluating these applications.

“The job that they’re doing is, oftentimes, unheralded. These people are behind the scenes, doing stuff every day to help us,” Gov. Justice said. “But they have always done and continue to do phenomenal work and I just can’t thank them enough.”

Every West Virginian who does not respond to the Census represents a loss of $20,000 in federal funds over the next 10 years for the state and its local communities. The funds can go toward things like healthcare, education, infrastructure, school lunch programs, and more.

Be counted in minutes: 2020census.gov.

This weekend, Task Force CRE and Task Force Medical will provide assistance for high-density population testing in Cabell, Kanawha, Marion and Monongalia counties. To date, they have conducted 2,879 COVID-19 tests for 87 lane support missions and 3,391 tests as a part of their overall response mission.

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