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byline: Kate Andrews

Online games made up 21% of Va. Lottery income

The Virginia Lottery raked in $436 million from online lottery games between their July 1, 2020, launch and the end of February, making up 21.8% of the state lottery’s total $2 billion revenue during that period.

According to a news release Wednesday, 163,000 players have won prizes playing the lottery online, including the Mega Millions, Powerball and Cash4Life games.

The lottery generated $595 million for K-12 education in the fiscal year 2020, and it anticipates breaking sales and profit records in fiscal year 2021, which ends June 30.

Gambling options have broadened in Virginia in recent months; along with the Virginia Lottery’s online games, the state legalized sports wagering in January and currently has eight licensed sports betting operators. Bally’s and the Golden Nugget — casino companies vying for the casino project in Richmond — have received temporary licensure from the Virginia Lottery to run sportsbooks but are not currently active. In January, Virginians bet $58.9 million with mobile sportsbooks.

Under current law, the Lottery can allocate 12 mobile betting licenses, but Gov. Ralph Northam is considering legislation that would expand the number of licenses available. Sports betting platforms with minority ownership or that will provide assistance to a historically disadvantaged community or historically Black colleges and universities in Virginia can be given licensure without counting toward the 12-license total in bills passed during the recent General Assembly session. Northam has until the end of March to sign the bills.

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PAE Inc. president and CEO resigns

PAE Inc., a Falls Church-based government contractor, has appointed Charles Peiffer as its interim president and CEO starting Friday, March 19, following the resignation this week of John Heller, who had led the company since 2013.

Peiffer is PAE’s executive vice president and chief financial officer.

Heller, who joined PAE from Engility Corp., resigned as president and CEO for personal reasons, according to PAE. During his tenure, PAE grew from $1.6 billion in annual revenue to $2.76 billion. It made several purchases that have expanded its offerings for national security customers, and the company also went public in early 2020 through its own acquisition by a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC.

According to the company’s filing Monday with the Securities and Exchanges Commission, Heller “submitted a letter resigning from his position as President and Chief Executive Officer of PAE Incorporated for personal reasons. Mr. Heller’s letter provided that his resignation is effective on March 19, 2021. Mr. Heller’s resignation was not due to any disagreement with PAE Incorporated on any matter relating to its operations, policies or practices.” In late-day trading Wednesday, the company’s stock was down 8%.

Peiffer was previously senior vice president and CFO at IAP Worldwide Services, and he held other executive positions at Fluid Technologies, Lucent Technologies, Martin Marietta and General Electric.

PAE will start a formal search process for a permanent CEO, it said in a news release Wednesday.

Charles Peiffer, PAE Inc. interim president and CEO

“On behalf of everyone at PAE, I want to thank John for his contributions and for helping to guide PAE to this point,” Marshall Heinberg, chairman of PAE’s board of directors, said in a statement. “During his tenure, PAE has grown into a leader in delivering mission-critical services to the U.S. government and international partners, with a global workforce of nearly 20,000 employees dedicated to providing the essential services our clients need to tackle some of the world’s toughest challenges. John’s efforts culminated in PAE becoming a publicly traded company last year, and we wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Heinberg added that Peiffer “has been a valuable member of the PAE team since he joined in 2014, and we are fortunate to have a leader of his caliber and experience to step into the president and CEO role on an interim basis while the Board conducts its search process.”

 

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Alexandria company wins $90M Army Corps of Engineers contract

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded Alexandria-based MPR Associates a $90 million, multiyear contract to provide technical services to the U.S. Department of Energy and other federal agencies, the company announced Tuesday.

MPR, a specialty engineering and management services firm, won its first U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) contract in 2010, and the company has performed waste cleanup and processing, construction and system modernization at several DOE sites, including the Los Alamos National Lab.

“Our previous USACE projects have allowed us to serve as an industry leader in risk assessments for DOE, bringing new tools and methodologies to assess highly technical, high-risk, multibillion dollar construction projects,” Ryan Downs, MPR vice president, federal, said in a statement. “We will continue to partner with the USACE to make a difference for them and for the country.”

 

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Draper Aden hires chief human resources officer

Richmond-based Draper Aden Associates has hired Robert Barclay as its chief human resources officer, the engineering, surveying and environmental services firm announced Tuesday. He will oversee the human resources and corporate health and safety teams, as well as serving on the firm’s executive team.

Barclay previously worked as vice president of administrative services and human resources at Discovery Natural Resources in Denver, and he has held other executive positions with Ovintiv and Medtronic. Barclay is an active member of the Society of Human Resource Management and holds degrees in human resources and economics and political science from the University of Minnesota and McGill University.

“We are pleased to welcome Rob to the team,” Draper Aden CEO and President Jeff Lighthiser said in a statement. “Managing our HR functions, he will help maintain and enhance our firm’s high-performing culture. We conducted a national search for this position and found a leader who will play an integral part in our firm’s growth as we continue to provide exceptional service to our clients.”

Founded in 1972, Draper Aden has eight offices in Virginia and North Carolina and has worked on projects at the Richmond International Airport, the Children’s Hospital of Richmond, Radford University, William & Mary and the Virginia State Capitol.

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CDW Corp. purchases Norfolk-based Amplified IT

Norfolk-based education consulting firm Amplified IT has been purchased by CDW Corp., an Illinois-based Fortune 500 technological services provider, CDW announced Tuesday.

Founded in 2008, Amplified IT focuses on the K-12 and higher education markets and is Google’s leading K-12 services partner. CDW offers its services to education customers as well as business, government and health care sectors. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“I am thrilled for Amplified IT to join CDW and build on our partnership that began in 2016,” Tim Lee, president and founder of Amplified IT, said in a statement. “We share a culture that puts customers at the center of everything we do and know that joining CDW creates meaningful opportunity for our education customers and our team.”

“The complexities and critical technology needs facing school districts and educational institutions as they serve their students have become more evident than ever,” CDW President and CEO Christine A. Leahy said in a statement. “The combination of Amplified IT’s focus on educator support and technical skills with CDW’s scale, reach, and leading market position in education will accelerate our collective ability to help schools leverage technology to achieve even greater educational outcomes.”

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McLean software company appoints two VPs

Logi Analytics, a McLean-based embedded software analytics firm, announced last week it has hired Vijay Pendyala as senior vice president of engineering and Jeff Seifert as vice president of alliances and channels.

Pendyala was most recently senior vice president of engineering at Guavus and has held other leadership roles at Hewlett Packard Enterprise and People Admin. Seifert was previously IBM’s global business unit executive of channel sales.

“Vijay and Jeff’s track record of driving innovation and building partnerships with companies around the world will accelerate our innovation agenda and global customer growth so that more application end users can gain the insights they need to make better decisions,” Logi CEO Kevin Greene said in a statement. “I’m thrilled to have them on board.”

Logi Analytics has offices in Ireland, England, Ukraine and China. Greene was promoted to CEO in October, having joined Logi in 2013 as vice president of business development.

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Danville, Eastern Shore first Va. localities to move into third vaccination phase

Danville and Eastern Shore health districts will be moving into phase 1c of the COVID-19 vaccination rollout this week, vaccinating a variety of workers from sectors including energy, higher education, finance, legal and housing and construction.

Other regions are likely to follow soon, the Virginia Department of Health announced Tuesday.

Others in group 1c include workers in water, waste removal, food service, transportation and logistics, information technology and communication, media and public safety as well as public health workers not included in earlier vaccination phases.

Danville and Petersburg have both opened mass vaccination clinics this week offering approximately 3,000 appointments per day, and Portsmouth is opening its mass clinic Wednesday, with Prince William County following suit next week. Funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the clinics are run by appointment only for people who have pre-registered for vaccines. To pre-register, visit vaccinate.virginia.gov or call the COVID Vaccine Hotline at 1-877-VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682).

“Those who have pre-registered should check the list at vaccinate.virginia.gov or by calling the call center to ensure their information is accurate,” VDH advised. “Incomplete or inaccurate information could result in you not being contacted for an appointment.”

With more vaccination sites and doses arriving in the state, VDH officials say they expect all communities to move into phase 1c by mid-April and for everyone age 16 or older to be eligible beginning May 1. All regions entering phase 1c must have “made strong efforts” to reach everyone eligible in the phase 1a and 1b populations, especially minority communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the virus, VDH said in its statement.

“Finally, the light at the end of this long journey seems to be coming into view,” State Health Commissioner Dr. Norman Oliver said in a statement. “Vaccine is our best hope of ending the pandemic. My heartfelt thanks to the many Virginians who are signing up and getting vaccinated and for the health care workers and volunteers who are administering vaccines.”

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Campbell County shopping center sells for $4.7M

A Campbell County shopping center sold for $4.7 million Monday, S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. announced Tuesday. The Kent Mall LLC, a Pennsylvania-based real estate investment company, purchased Rustburg Marketplace, a 46,700-square-foot shopping center, from Rustburg Ventures LLC of Richmond.

Anchored by Food Lion, the shopping center is 100% occupied and has nine local and national tenants, including Family Dollar, Virginia ABC, Domino’s Pizza and Subway.

 

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COVID roundup: Va. deaths surpass 10,000; 21% of population vaccinated

Virginia exceeded 10,000 coronavirus-related deaths as of March 15, one year and one day after the first COVID-19 death was recorded in the state.

Also, 21% of the state’s population — 1.7 million people — have now received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, according to the Virginia Department of Health. And more than 1 million people in that number have been fully vaccinated, receiving two shots of Moderna or Pfizer Inc., or a single dose of Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine.

On Monday afternoon, Gov. Ralph Northam and Virginia first lady Pam Northam received their shots — the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the governor’s office said Sunday. Executive Mansion staff and others who travel with the governor also got vaccinated Monday.

Over the past week, the state recorded 9,273 new COVID cases and 377 fatalities, continuing a significant decline since the post-holidays spike. As of March 15, the state has reported 595,865 total cases and 10,060 deaths. The current seven-day positivity rate is 5.4%, an 0.8% decrease from last week.

As the state continues to receive larger shipments of vaccine doses — 399,080 doses in the past week, not including those sent directly from the federal government to pharmacies — more people are getting shots.

State vaccine coordinator Dr. Danny Avula said Friday that the number of people age 65 and older seeking the vaccine is beginning to slow down, and  younger people with underlying health conditions and essential jobs are able to get vaccine appointments now. The state is launching its first mass vaccination events this week in Danville, Petersburg and Portsmouth, administering thousands of doses a day. Funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the clinics are expected to open in 13 locations across the state over the next three months and are focusing on communities that have lower numbers of vaccinated people and have seen more cases, hospitalizations and deaths, Avula said.

Avula anticipates that every Virginian in group 1b will be able to get access to their first dose by the end of April and possibly sooner in some parts of the state, and people in group 1c and then the rest of the population age 16 and older will be able to get their shots by the end of May.

The Health Wagon and the Virginia Dental Association Foundation announced Monday they have canceled the popup free medical and dental clinic for a second year in Wise County. Formerly known as the Wise Remote Area Medical clinic, the Move Mountains Medical Mission was set to take place July 9 and 10, but the event has been canceled due to the pandemic. The two organizations said in a statement they will begin planning for the 2022 event soon.

The state now ranks seventh in the nation for its percentage of vaccine doses administered, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed by Becker’s Hospital Review.

Last month, VDH launched a statewide vaccine registration website for all Virginia residents who want a vaccine, as well as a phone hotline staffed by 750 employees from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. All adult residents of Virginia can now register at vaccinate.virginia.gov or call (877) VAX-IN-VA, or (877) 829-4682.

With race and ethnicity information available for only 65.7% of people who have received shots in the state, the majority of shots have been received by white, non-Hispanic people — 70% as of Monday, according to VDH. Black Virginians have received 13.7% of shots, although they make up 19.9% of the state’s population, according to 2019 estimates by the U.S. Census; 5.9% of vaccines were given to Latino residents, who comprise about 9.8% of Virginians.

State health officials have focused attention on equitable vaccination, especially as Latino and Black residents are heavily represented among people who have been infected, hospitalized and died from the coronavirus. Among Virginia’s COVID deaths in which ethnicity and race are recorded, 24.2% were Black, and 6.6% were Latino.

As of March 11, the following health districts have positivity rates of 10% or higher:

  • Hampton — 13%, up from 12.5% on March 4
  • Portsmouth — 12%, up from 11.7%
  • Chesapeake — 10.7%, down from 11.5%

Globally, there are 119.9 million reported COVID-19 cases and 2,655,612 confirmed deaths, as of March 15. The United States, which has the most confirmed cases and deaths worldwide, has seen 29.4 million confirmed cases so far, with 534,937 deaths attributed to the coronavirus since February 2020.

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Virginians ages 65+ have mostly gotten COVID shots

With more than 1.6 million Virginians having received COVID-19 vaccinations, the number of people age 65 and older seeking COVID-19 shots is beginning to slow down, Dr. Danny Avula said Friday. That has left more appointments open for younger people with health issues or who work in essential jobs.

Avula, the state’s vaccine coordinator, said he is confident Virginia will be able to open up eligibility to all adult residents by May 1, the deadline proposed by President Joe Biden this week, and possibly up to two weeks earlier. Unlike in January, when Gov. Ralph Northam opened eligibility to everyone in group 1b, which led to widespread frustration amid lower supply and far greater demand, Avula said that greater supply of vaccine doses and increased capacity to administer shots make this round much smoother.

“We’re in a completely different vaccine environment,” Avula said.

He also gave more detail about the state’s large-scale vaccination clinics scheduled next week for Danville, Portsmouth and Petersburg. The localities were chosen for several factors including low vaccination rates, higher risk factors and more per-capita hospitalizations and deaths, Avula said. The clinics will provide thousands of shots a day and will be funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Appointments will be still required.

Danville’s clinic will launch at the shuttered JCPenney store on Monday, offering 3,000 appointments a day based on the state’s preregistered lists. Portsmouth’s clinic launches Tuesday and expects to schedule 1,000 appointments a day, and Petersburg’s site opens Wednesday, with 3,000 appointments a day. There will be 13 locations statewide that will eventually open mass clinics.

Avula expects those sites to be open at least two weeks if not longer, but if appointments start to slow down consistently, the state will redeploy resources as needed. Moderna and Pfizer Inc. vaccine doses will be administered at the mass clinics over the next two weeks, as the number of Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine allocation will slow down until the first week of April, as it catches up with production. Avula expects to receive about 100,000 J&J doses per week starting then.

Asked about people “gaming the system” and setting appointments for themselves outside their residential areas — often traveling from higher population centers to rural areas — Avula asked people to think about others who are at higher risk and in more need of the vaccine. A reporter said Facebook groups are notifying each other when new batches of appointments open up, getting their shots ahead of local residents in regions like Southwest Virginia. Avula responded that he “doesn’t love it,” but added he can’t place too much burden on staffers at vaccination sites to determine if someone is eligible for the vaccine.

Overall, he said, the state is moving swiftly in vaccinating people, and according to Centers for Disease Control & Prevention data, Virginia is fourth in the nation for percentage of doses administered. Avula said he expects that every Virginian in group 1b will be able to get access to their first dose by the end of April and even sooner in some parts of the state, allowing people in group 1c and the rest of the population age 16 and up to get their shots by the end of May. He expects up to 700,000 doses allocated per week by May.

Looking ahead, older children may start receiving vaccine doses by the fall and younger children by early 2022, Avula said.

Addressing a report that a Kroger pharmacy in Chesterfield County mistakenly used empty syringes instead of vaccine, Avula said he doesn’t know what happened and had not heard of anything similar occurring elsewhere. He noted that fewer than 10 people were affected before the mistake was discovered, and none were seriously harmed. Vaccinators at the store’s clinic have been retrained, and the Virginia Department of Health is working with the store to address the situation, according to Kroger.

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