LYNCHBURG, Va. (WFXR) — The 2024 Virginia Commonwealth Games are just around the corner, with the weekend taking place from July 19-21 set to ignite the City of Lynchburg and Liberty University with a celebration of sportsmanship and talent.

Athletes from across the state are gearing up to showcase their skills in a wide range of sports.

For details on registering and volunteering, log on to https://www.commonwealthgames.org/

CHARLESTON, W. Va.– West Virginia Health Right unveiled an expansion for its East End Clinic in Charleston Wednesday afternoon.

Health Right, which provides healthcare access for under protected people in the state, added a third story to its East End Clinic on Washington Street East, with an expansion to the on-site pharmacy, improved dental and vision clinics, as well as behavioral health services.

CEO of West Virginia Health Right, Dr. Angie Settle, said in a statement that the project has been several years in the making.

“This project is the culmination of five years of planning and fundraising, even though the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Settle said.

During the pandemic, Health Right served as the first free testing site in West Virginia and was able to administer nearly 100,000 tests.

The building expansion project took around $12 million to build, and according to the company’s board president, Ryan Lindsay, this is one of the biggest accomplishments for Health Right since he came to the company.

“We’ve done a lot in the eight years that I’ve been on the board,” Lindsay said at the ceremony Wednesday afternoon. “We’ve put together a mobile dental clinic, we’ve opened up the West Side clinic, which is a great endeavor of ours, but this is a really big one. I mean, this one right here opens the doors to everybody in Charleston and Kanawha County and the state of West Virginia.

Health Right has served over 40,000 patients over the last five years, despite the fact that, before the expansion, the original building on Washington Street East was built to serve roughly 15,000 people across that same timeframe.

Multiple partners of Health Right West Virginia came out this afternoon to show their support of the new building, including the Greater Kanawha County Foundation and the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC).

Kanawha County Foundation President and CEO Michelle Foster, says her company has been in support of multiple projects Health Right has done over the years, and is excited for the future.

“We have supported the original Health Right site for a number of years, and we’ve also supported the dental bus that goes out into those rural counties to reach underserved populations, ” Foster said. “We’re big fans of Health Right, and we’re excited about this expansion that they’ve had.”

Gayle Manchin, ARC Federal Co-Chair and wife of U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, said ARC helped out where they could in the process, but the success starts with the company in charge of the plans.

“ARC has really worked with Health Right over the years, so we’re just one small part of the project, but that’s usually the way ARC works,” Manchin said Wednesday. “We are a partner with others to make good things happens, but where the good things happen is really at the grassroots.”

Health Right will continue to provide healthcare to West Virginians with either no insurance or those who are underinsured, but with a far more extensive facility.

LYNCHBURG, Va. (WDBJ/VDH Release) – The Central Virginia Health District (CVHD) is informing students, faculty and staff of Liberty University, other colleges in the area, and the surrounding community at large of a recent increase in reported pertussis (commonly referred to as whooping cough).

CVHD staff is working with local healthcare providers to identify and treat potential cases. They say it is important that any ill individual stay away from others to prevent the spread of the infectious disease.

According to the CVHD, the majority of recently diagnosed cases have been previously vaccinated, but you can still get pertussis if you have been vaccinated. The effectiveness of the vaccine varies and may decrease over time. This does not mean you should not get the vaccine. The current vaccine prevents illness for the majority who receive it and it also helps to prevent severe respiratory illness, hospitalizations and/or death in infants and immune compromised or elderly individuals.

The CVHD says Pertussis is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by bacteria spread through the air in droplets from sneezing or coughing. The illness typically begins with “cold-like” symptoms – runny nose, sneezing, mild fever and cough. Newly infected persons are most contagious during the first two weeks of illness when cold-like symptoms are present and continues to be contagious through the third week after the onset of cough. According to the CVHD, If left untreated, infected individuals may develop a more severe respiratory illness that includes coughing fits accompanied by difficulty breathing, gagging or vomiting, or a cough that is followed by a high pitched “whooping” noise as the person tries to catch his or her breath.

The CVHD says experiencing pertussis symptoms should seek medical evaluation and avoid public or group settings. Anyone diagnosed and being treated for pertussis is reminded to take all medications as prescribed (typically 5-day course of antibiotics) and to stay at home and avoid group activities for the five days to avoid infecting others. The health department also recommends keeping infants and other high-risk individuals away from anyone with a respiratory like illness including those confirmed/suspected cases of pertussis.

According to the CVHD, the best way to prevent the spread of pertussis is by vaccinating all babies, children, teens and adults that are able to be vaccinated. Consult with a health care provider to see if another vaccine might be needed to protect against pertussis.

Like many other respiratory illnesses, including the common cold and flu, pertussis is spread by coughing and sneezing while in close contact with others, who then breathe in bacteria.

Below are ways the CVHD says to prevent the spread of pertussis:

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you do not have a tissue, you can cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve or elbow, not your hands.

• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If you do not have access to a sink with soap, alcohol-based hand sanitizers may be used.

• Do not share food, drinks, vaping products or anything that has come into contact with someone else’s saliva.

• If you’re ill, stay at home.

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