The COVID Project
The record
- Jurisdiction
- West Virginia
- Level
- State
- Authority
- W. Va. Code R. §§ 64-7-1 to 64-7-25 (filed July 12, 2013; effective Aug. 12, 2013)
- Issued
- 2013-07-12 July 12, 2013
- Effective
- 2013-08-12; in force throughout 2020 Q2 to 2021 Q3 (read as 2013-08-12)
- End
- standing (read as 2021-09-30)
- In force
- Standing since Aug. 12, 2013 (a statutory duty; in force throughout the six quarters)
- Quarters
- 2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
- Limitation types
- Stay-at-homeBusiness closureStanding duty
- Addressees
- physicians and licensed practitioners; local health officers; laboratories; all health care facilities; administrators of schools, camps and vessels; occupants and owners of placarded premises; 'any other person investigating or treating disease... exposure or alleged exposure to infectious agents' (§ 1.5); facilities reporting outbreaks (§ 7.1)
- Character
- statutory duty
- Collection
- Standing duties: West Virginia DUT-WV
Operative words
21.1. The authority to implement and terminate quarantine or placarding to prevent spread of a communicable disease... rests with the Commissioner.... 24.1. Any person who is subject to the provisions of this rule who... otherwise fails to act in accordance with this rule is guilty of a misdemeanor... Each violation is considered a separate offense.
Penalty
Misdemeanor; fine up to $500 'as provided under W. Va. Code § 16-1-18'; 'Each violation is considered a separate offense' (§ 24.1)
What it required
Isolation of persons with a communicable disease initiated by the local health officer (§ 21.2); quarantine and placarding by the Commissioner and local health officers (§ 21.1); no person to 'interfere with or obstruct' placarding or to 'conceal, mutilate or remove any placard' (§ 21.3), the 'occupant or... the owner of the premises' to report a removed placard immediately (§ 21.4); every facility including any 'other facility or related to a restaurant or food establishment' that becomes aware of an outbreak to 'report the outbreak to the local health officer immediately' (§ 7.1); health care providers to 'Follow a method of control specified by the Commissioner' (§ 14.1.a.5); local health officers to 'implement the prevention and control methods specified by the protocols' (§ 16.4.a). 'Quarantine' is defined as 'The limitation of freedom of movement of persons or animals in a time frame and manner to prevent contacts that could lead to spread of disease' (§ 2.43).
Retrieval noteThe rule lists 'SARS coronavirus infection, suspect or confirmed' as a Category I (immediately reportable) disease (§ 3.3.b.13); the Commissioner added COVID-19 by the April 2020 'Other' filings shown on the register (Apr. 16 and Apr. 22, 2020; not saved). The rule's control-measure machinery (isolation, quarantine, placarding, outbreak reporting, control methods 'specified by the Commissioner') is what the local health departments used against businesses with cases (Ex. WV-082).