The
COVID-19 Data Review Panel, responsible for verifying the data utilized in the West Virginia Department
of Education (WVDE) School Re-Entry Metrics Map, today reviewed data from a
public health perspective to determine the accuracy and reliability of the data
to ensure they are a true indication of what’s occurring among counties across
West Virginia.
As a result of today’s review, the panel has
determined that all counties will remain the same as today’s West Virginia
Department of Health and Human Resources’ (DHHR) County Alert Map with the
exception of Monroe County, as it will move from red to orange on the WVDE re-entry
map. Although Monroe County has been a
red county for over a week, both the daily number of cases and the average
7-day incidence have declined sufficiently to meet the criteria for
orange. The panel was able to draw valid
conclusions from that trend that the level of disease in Monroe County is
improving.
“The individuals on this COVID-19 Data
Review Panel are responsible for reviewing trends in the data and the degree of
statistical confidence in the data based upon accepted public health practice,”
said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary. “This panel is not making
decisions about schools reopening but is responsible for providing accurate
data that will drive those decisions.”
The panel also ensured that all COVID-19
positive nursing home residents and prison inmates are excluded in the
calculation of both 7-day and 14-day county incident rates because these
individuals are not in the community and therefore not contributing to
community spread.
“Our
goal is to ensure that we provide good, solid data into the model that the West
Virginia Department of Education will use to make decisions on school
re-openings,” Crouch said.
The COVID-19
Data
Review Panel includes Dr. Clay Marsh, Coronavirus Czar, and Vice
President & Executive Dean for Health Sciences at WVU; DHHR Cabinet
Secretary Bill Crouch; Dr. Ayne Amjad, State Health Officer; Dr. Jeff Coben,
Associate Vice President for Health Affairs and Dean of the School of Public
Health at WVU; and Amy Atkins, Director, Office of Epidemiology and Prevention
Services, DHHR’s Bureau for Public Health.
Please
visit the dashboard located at www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.
To review the
WVDE School Re-entry Metrics Map, visit http://wvde.us/reentrymetrics.
For more information, please visit https://wvde.us/west-virginia-department-of-education-issues-sept-5-2020-school-re-entry-map-update/