Today in D.C.: Headlines to start your Wednesday in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
Good Wednesday #GoodWednesday
Good morning — it’s Wednesday. Grab your coffee or tea. On Tuesday, the District, Maryland and Virginia combined set a record for the most coronavirus-related deaths reported in one day since the start of the pandemic.
Today’s weather: When partly sunny and low-to-mid-40s conditions could make today the most comfortable day of the forecast period, you know you’ve got a solid winter air mass settling in. Highs: Low to mid-40s.
Here are the top stories for Wednesday:
8:37 AM: Many of D.C. area’s nursing home workers say no to coronavirus vaccine
A large percentage of nursing home workers in D.C., Maryland and Virginia have declined to take the coronavirus vaccine, officials say, presenting a major challenge in the region’s plans to protect its most vulnerable residents.
Nursing home workers were first offered the vaccine in late December and early January, along with residents of long-term care facilities and other health-care workers. Their wariness, providers and union representatives say, is fueled by online misinformation about the vaccine and historical mistrust of the medical system of which they are a part.
In the meantime, other members of the public are scrambling for the limited supply of vaccine doses available to them, with many elderly adults and some essential workers unable to find appointments or having their time slots canceled in recent days.
In an internal document obtained by The Washington Post, Maryland health officials said that as of Tuesday, only about 58 percent of the doses allocated to nursing home staff and residents had been administered — even though vaccination clinics have been conducted at every facility. Tredonna Kum, an administrative organizer for 1199 SEIU, which represents nursing home workers in Maryland and D.C., estimated that up to 80 percent of members chose not to be vaccinated during the first wave of clinics.
“One of the surprises in the first three weeks was that in health care and in the nursing homes, there was about a 35 to 50 percent uptake. … We had expected closer to 80 or 90 percent uptake,” Maryland’s acting health secretary, Dennis R. Schrader, told state lawmakers this week.
Read the full story
An investment firm snapped up nursing homes during the pandemic. Employees say care suffered.
By: Rachel Chason, Rebecca Tan, Jenna Portnoy and Erin Cox
8:17 AM: Baby panda to make debut — online — at National Zoo
The National Zoo’s giant panda cub will make its debut Wednesday from the zoo. But unlike in normal times, the cute baby panda will do it online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The zoo is closed because of the pandemic and has not said when it will reopen.
Officials at the zoo said Xiao Qi Ji can be seen on the facility’s live stream at 1 p.m. Viewers will also get a “virtual tour of the panda house,” and experts will answer some questions about the panda.
The viewing is free and does not require registration.
Viewers can see the live broadcast of the baby panda’s debut on the zoo’s YouTube channel or Facebook page.
The live-stream viewing is expected to last only about five minutes, and the behind-the-scenes look at the panda house will last roughly 10 minutes. Officials said recordings of the event will be available on the zoo’s social media channels.
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By: Dana Hedgpeth
7:57 AM: More vaccine access promised in Maryland
Maryland announced plans Tuesday for six new mass vaccination centers staffed by the National Guard on a day marked by the most coronavirus-related deaths reported in the region since the start of the pandemic.
Virginia, Maryland and D.C. reported 165 fatalities, breaking a record set two weeks earlier. Each jurisdiction had a death toll Tuesday that was well above its rolling seven-day average — a number that also reached a new high in the region Tuesday of 103 deaths. Virginia’s 93 new deaths set a daily record when excluding state reporting anomalies.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), acknowledging that residents have struggled to find open appointment slots to get vaccinated, said the state will open its first mass vaccination sites next week and will distribute vaccine doses to more pharmacies, including some Safeway and Rite Aid stores.
As of Tuesday, the number of Maryland residents eligible for vaccination was roughly three times as large as the number of doses available. The governor also announced he would again broaden the pool of eligible residents starting Monday to include severely immunocompromised people, such as those undergoing chemotherapy.
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By: Erin Cox, Julie Zauzmer and Meagan Flynn
7:37 AM: Fairfax County adopts policy barring cooperation with federal immigration agents
Fairfax County on Tuesday formally adopted a long-standing practice of prohibiting county employees from cooperating with federal immigration agents — a step aimed at addressing reports that some undocumented immigrants in the county have avoided seeking help during the coronavirus pandemic, out of fear of being deported.
The “Trust Policy,” approved by the county’s Board of Supervisors on a 9-to-1 vote, prohibits county employees from sharing or seeking information about the immigration status of a county resident unless that action is mandated by a state or federal law, a court order or a judicial warrant.
“We need to be very clear about what our expectations are,” said board Chairman Jeff C. McKay (D-At Large), who co-sponsored the policy with Supervisors Dalia A. Palchik (D-Providence) and John W. Foust (D-Dranesville). “Immigration enforcement is done by others.”
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By: Antonio Olivo
7:18 AM: D.C. requests support from 500 members of D.C. National Guard through March 12
D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) has requested that a total of 500 members of the D.C. National Guard remain activated through March 12 for the upcoming impeachment trial of Donald Trump, President Biden’s February speech to Congress and potential extremist activity in the city on March 4.
The Monday letter came days after D.C. National Guard Maj. Gen. William J. Walker granted Bowser’s earlier request for 500 troops to stay in the District through Jan. 30.
Christopher Rodriguez, director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, said in the letter that the primary function of the troops’ extended stay would be to assist D.C. police “in the event our civil disturbance (mobile field force) capabilities are extended.”
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By: Emily Davies
6:56 AM: Teachers are moving to the front of the vaccine line — but that doesn’t mean all schools will reopen right away
Vaccinating teachers has been widely hailed as a vital step toward reopening the nation’s still-closed schools and, in many places, educators have been moved toward the front of the line for shots.
But it has not gone hand-in-hand with efforts to return students to classrooms. And adding to the confusion, some officials are explicitly refusing to link vaccination and reopening.
Part of the problem is the chaotic logistics of vaccine distribution as the pandemic rages on. Not all teachers can get the shots right away, and even for those who do, the process takes time: Vaccines must be delivered in twin doses almost a month apart. Even in the best case, most educators will not be fully vaccinated until late February at earliest.
Those who get the shots say it makes them hopeful. “It gives me a reassurance I haven’t had until now,” said Maryland educator Susie Shafer, after being immunized Friday.
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By: Hannah Natanson, Donna St. George and Perry Stein
6:33 AM: D.C. police sent 850 officers to the Capitol during insurrection
D.C. police sent about 850 officers, nearly one-quarter of its force, to help rescue the U.S. Capitol from the mob that broke in Jan. 6, and the department estimates it cost the District $8.8 million to secure the downtown during the week the insurrection occurred.
Acting police chief Robert J. Contee III, in his opening statement Tuesday before a closed session of the House Appropriations Committee, also said for the first time that a D.C. police officer who had been at the riot committed suicide in the days that followed.
Contee identified the officer as Jeffery Smith. A department spokesman said Smith was a 12-year veteran assigned to patrol in the 2nd District, which includes the neighborhoods of Chevy Chase, Cleveland Park and Georgetown. The Post could not locate Smith’s family Tuesday evening.
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By: Peter Hermann
6:12 AM: Maryland, citing pandemic, delays release of draft study for third Bay Bridge span
Maryland officials have delayed the release of a draft study exploring where to build a third span for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, saying they had to postpone federally required public hearings due to the worsening pandemic.
The study, which analyzed the community and environmental impacts of three potential corridors for an additional span, was scheduled to be released last fall, said John Sales, spokesman for the Maryland Transportation Authority. Public hearings on the findings were scheduled for this winter.
The state was on track to meet that schedule, Sales said, until coronavirus infection rates and “associated restrictions” increased. A plan to release the findings in December also was pushed back due to climbing coronavirus cases, he said.
“Proceeding with publishing the [draft study] and scheduling public hearing would not have been a safe choice while health officials were telling Marylanders they would be safer at home,” Sales said.
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By: Katherine Shaver
6:10 AM: D.C.-area forecast: A little nicer today, cold and blustery tomorrow. Sunday winter storm?
The Capital Weather Gang rates today’s weather a 5/10: an average score for a late-January day, with temperatures near normal (low to mid-40s), partial sun and a steady breeze. A somewhat subjective rating of the day’s weather, on a scale of 0 to 10.
Today: After some early-morning fog, partly sunny skies help temperatures rebound somewhat, rising through the 30s this morning with afternoon highs in the low to mid-40s. But a steady breeze around 10 to 15 mph from the northwest adds an extra chill. Confidence: Medium-High.
Tonight: A breeze from the north around 10 to 15 mph continues to lock the cold air in place. That means lows dipping to the 20s under mostly cloudy skies, with perhaps a flurry or brief period of light snow south of the Beltway. Confidence: High.
Tomorrow (Thursday): We’re between strong high pressure to the west and a strong low-pressure system off the coast. That puts us smack in the middle of strong winds between the systems, from the northwest at 15 to 25 mph, with gusts 30 to 40 mph. Early-morning clouds should give way to a mostly sunny day but with highs only in the mid- to upper 30s and wind chills only in the upper teens and 20s. Confidence: Medium-High.
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By: Dan Stillman
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By: Teddy Amenabar