Regional News
Maryland becomes haven for out-of-state abortion seekers, providers
BETHESDA — Off Old Georgetown Road, just south of Interstate 270 and not far from where abortion opponents are known to stand in the median and protest, is one of few abortion clinics in the U.S. that offers abortions in the latter stages of pregnancy.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in late June, the clinic’s staff has worked overtime to provide care to the influx of out-of-state patients.
When abortion was a federally protected right, the Clinics for Abortion & Reproductive Excellence, CARE staff typically saw 15 to 17 patients weekly. In the two months since abortions were left to states’ discretion, the number of patients from other states has surged, officials at the clinic said.
Kelsey and Katrina, who asked to be identified by their first names for security reasons, working at the front desk of Clinics for Abortion & Reproductive Excellence, an abortion clinic in Bethesda, Maryland. The staff has seen an increase in out-of-state patients and workers in the two months since the reversal of Roe v. Wade. (Abby Zimmardi/Capital News Service)
The acting clinic administrator and medical assistant at CARE is Kelsey, identified by only her first name for security reasons. Kelsey said that out-of-state people now account for a large portion of patients, and numerous referrals come from the South.
Dr. LeRoy Carhart, the medical director, echoed Kelsey’s comments.
“We’re increasing every week,” Carhart said. “We have 24 patients on the schedule right now this week…We have one or two patients from Mississippi or Atlanta every week.”
Abortion providers in Maryland said they see the impact of the reversal of Roe v. Wade as increasing numbers of out-of-state patients and even staff members from closed healthcare facilities make their way to their doors.
At Hillcrest Clinic, an abortion provider in Catonsville, Maryland, the staff has received calls from workers at abortionfinder.org and ineedana.com, websites that help people locate abortion clinics, said Hillcrest’s administrator, Charlotte.
Charlotte, who asked to be identified by her first name only for security reasons, said she thinks those calls are helping out-of-state clients find her clinic.
People from the surrounding states of Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Ohio, and also numerous patients from Texas, have come to Hillcrest to receive an abortion, she said. The result, she said, is an uptick in patients overall.
Clinics in Maryland were already seeing patients from West Virginia, even before this week when the state virtually outlawed all abortions because of abortion restrictions that previously existed in the state.
Whole Woman’s Health, an abortion provider, has clinics in Indiana, Virginia, Minnesota, and Maryland. The organization did have four clinics in Texas, but due to the state’s strict abortion laws, those clinics were closed, said Marva Sadler, senior director of clinical services. She said the staff from those shuttered facilities have been referring Texas patients to their clinics outside the state, including its Baltimore location.
At CARE, Kelsey said many of their patients are from Georgia. Under the state’s new law, abortions are outlawed after six weeks of pregnancy.
An official at Planned Parenthood Southeast said provisions in the law appear to be modeled after the Texas abortion law, which allows citizens to bring lawsuits against other Texans involved in helping a person receive an abortion.
Consequently, workers at Summit Medical Associate in Atlanta said they have been told not to refer patients to clinics outside the state for fear of running afoul of the law. Instead, they can only refer patients to abortionfinder.org.
“It’s real hard,” said Yaya Guy, a medical assistant at the facility. “We know the clinics where they can go to, but that part of the law restricts us from doing that.”
Many new patients from Mississippi at CARE are related to the closure of Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the state’s only abortion provider. The Mississippi clinic was the face of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the landmark ruling that reversed Roe v. Wade.
When women do decide to venture out of state for an abortion, it can be extremely difficult, Maryland providers said.
“Clinics go out of business, and then it becomes a fight for women to find the next closest one, which then [involves] coordinating with childcare and coordinating travel costs,” Kelsey said. “It’s just a huge take-on task for so many women to try to figure out how to do that.”
The overturning of Roe has caused not only patients to come to Maryland. Staff from closed abortion clinics in other states are also arriving in search of jobs.
CARE’s staff now includes workers who moved from other clinics to Maryland to continue their work as abortion providers. One staff member, Sue, who also wanted to be identified by only her first name, came from Tennessee, a state with a near-total abortion ban.
Sue, a nurse practitioner, said she could no longer work in Tennessee because under the state’s laws, performing an abortion is considered a Class C felony, leading to up to 15 years in prison.
“I also have a young daughter, and I’m not from Tennessee originally, but I had lived there for the past 12 years,” she said. “I had always told my husband that we would not raise a daughter in a state that didn’t have full-scope reproductive care for women. So, that was the last straw for us, and that’s why we relocated here.”
There are dozens of abortion clinics across Maryland, and new ones are in the works. In the most recent year for data on abortion clinics, 2017, there were 44 Maryland locations with providers offering abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit organization that reports on reproductive health and rights.
“Luckily, there are enough clinics in Maryland that I think we’ll be able to take care of all the Marylanders who need us and then do as much as we can for the out-of-state folks,” Sue said.
As a nurse practitioner, Sue is legally allowed to perform abortions in Maryland under the Abortion Care Act, which passed in the General Assembly during its last session and went into effect on July 1. The new law provides $3.5 million to train nurse practitioners and other medical professionals to perform abortions.
As a result, Carhart said he trained two nurse practitioners to work at CARE and provide abortions. Along with the nurse practitioners, CARE’s staff has grown to include one registered nurse, six medical assistants, one full-time doctor, and three part-time physicians.
Although the CARE team has increased, Carhart said he worked six days a week rather than four, his typical work schedule before the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Carhart began performing abortions in 1970 as a junior in medical school. He is well-known for practicing abortions in the later stage of pregnancy. He worked with George Tiller, a physician who performed the same procedures in Kansas, and who was gunned down while in church in 2009 in Witchita, Kansas, by an anti-abortion extremist. In 2013, he was featured in a documentary on Tiller’s life and murder,
Carhart was threatened in 1991 when anti-abortionists set numerous fires on his Nebraska property that burned down his home and farm, killing 21 horses, a dog, and a cat.
Additionally, Carhart was involved in the U.S. Supreme Court case Stenberg v. Carhart, in which Carhart argued that a Nebraska law prohibiting “partial-birth abortion” violated the Fourteenth Amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in Carhart’s favor in 2000.
He is also known for Gonzales v. Carhart, in which Congress passed, and former President Bush signed into law a bill that banned partial-birth abortions. Carhart sued to stop the act from going into effect. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against him in a 5-4 decision in 2007.
Carhart recently treated a patient from another state at CARE who was forced to carry her pregnancy for 30 weeks because where she lived in the Southeast, an area with restrictive abortion laws, she could not find any clinic that could legally give her an abortion at her stage in the pregnancy, Carhart said.
He said the woman wanted an abortion because her baby had a brain hemorrhage, had not moved for weeks, and did not have a chance at survival.
“It just took her that long to find somebody who would take care of her, and that’s the biggest part right now,” he said. “They’re devastated. They don’t know where to go.”
By Abby Zimmardi
Capital News Service
Regional News
FDA approves first over-the-counter Naloxone nasal spray
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Narcan, a 4 milligram (mg) naloxone hydrochloride nasal spray for over-the-counter (OTC), nonprescription use – the first naloxone product approved for use without a prescription. Naloxone is a medication that rapidly reverses the effects of opioid overdose and is the standard treatment for opioid overdose. Today’s action paves the way for the life-saving medication to reverse an opioid overdose to be sold directly to consumers in places like drug stores, convenience stores, grocery stores, and gas stations, as well as online.
The timeline for the availability and price of this OTC product is determined by the manufacturer. The FDA will work with all stakeholders to help facilitate the continued availability of naloxone nasal spray products during the time needed to implement the Narcan switch from prescription to OTC status, which may take months. Other formulations and dosages of naloxone will remain available by prescription only.
Drug overdose persists as a major public health issue in the United States, with more than 101,750 reported fatal overdoses occurring in the 12-month period ending in October 2022, primarily driven by synthetic opioids like illicit fentanyl.
“The FDA remains committed to addressing the evolving complexities of the overdose crisis. As part of this work, the agency has used its regulatory authority to facilitate greater access to naloxone by encouraging the development of and approving an over-the-counter naloxone product to address the dire public health need,” said FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, M.D. “Today’s approval of OTC naloxone nasal spray will help improve access to naloxone, increase the number of locations where it’s available, and help reduce opioid overdose deaths throughout the country. We encourage the manufacturer to make accessibility to the product a priority by making it available as soon as possible and at an affordable price.”
The Narcan nasal spray was first approved by the FDA in 2015 as a prescription drug. In accordance with a process to change the status of a drug from prescription to nonprescription, the manufacturer provided data demonstrating that the drug is safe and effective for use as directed in its proposed labeling. The manufacturer also showed that consumers could understand how to use the drug safely and effectively without the supervision of a healthcare professional. The application to approve Narcan nasal spray for OTC use was granted priority review status. It was the subject of an advisory committee meeting in February 2023, where committee members voted unanimously to recommend it be approved for marketing without a prescription.
The approval of OTC Narcan nasal spray will require a change in the labeling for the currently approved 4 mg generic naloxone nasal spray products that rely on Narcan as their reference listed drug product. Manufacturers of these products will be required to submit a supplement to their applications to effectively switch their products to OTC status. The approval may also affect the status of other brand-name naloxone nasal spray products of 4 mg or less, but determinations will be made on a case-by-case basis, and the FDA may contact other firms as needed.
The use of Narcan nasal spray in individuals who are opioid dependent may result in severe opioid withdrawal characterized by body aches, diarrhea, increased heart rate (tachycardia), fever, runny nose, sneezing, goose bumps, sweating, yawning, nausea or vomiting, nervousness, restlessness or irritability, shivering or trembling, abdominal cramps, weakness, and increased blood pressure.
“Naloxone is a critical tool in addressing opioid overdoses, and today’s approval underscores the extensive efforts the agency has undertaken to combat the overdose crisis,” said Patrizia Cavazzoni, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “The FDA is working with our federal partners to help ensure continued access to all forms of naloxone during the transition of this product from prescription status to nonprescription/OTC status. Further, we will work with any sponsor seeking to market a nonprescription naloxone product, including through an Rx to OTC switch, and encourage manufacturers to contact the agency as early as possible to initiate discussions.”
The FDA has taken a series of measures to help facilitate access to naloxone products. In November 2022, the agency announced its preliminary assessment that certain naloxone products, such as the one ultimately approved today, have the potential to be safe and effective for over-the-counter use and encouraged sponsors to submit applications for approval of OTC naloxone products. The agency previously announced in 2019 that it had designed, tested, and validated a model naloxone Drug Facts Label (DFL) with easy-to-understand pictograms on how to use the drug to encourage manufacturers to pursue approval of OTC naloxone products. The model DFL was used to support the approved application along with the results of a simulated use Human Factors validation study designed to assess whether all the components of the product with which a user would interact could be used safely and effectively as intended.
Through the FDA Overdose Prevention Framework, the agency remains focused on responding to all facets of substance use, misuse, substance use disorders, overdose, and death in the U.S. The framework’s priorities include: supporting primary prevention by eliminating unnecessary initial prescription drug exposure and inappropriate prolonged prescribing; encouraging harm reduction through innovation and education; advancing the development of evidence-based treatments for substance use disorders; and protecting the public from unapproved, diverted, or counterfeit drugs presenting overdose risks.
The FDA granted the OTC approval of Narcan to Emergent BioSolutions.
U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), released the statement below after Federal Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the over-the-counter sale of Narcan, a nasal spray drug that rapidly reverses the effects of opioid overdose and is the standard treatment for opioid overdose. Prior to today’s action by the FDA, this lifesaving medication was available by prescription only.
“This announcement is welcome news for the communities in Virginia and across the country that have been torn apart by the opioid epidemic, including deaths from fentanyl. As we continue pursuing a comprehensive range of solutions to tackle the opioid epidemic, I applaud the FDA for acting to put this lifesaving medication in the hands of more Americans – a move that is sure to fight overdose deaths and save lives.”
Local News
Fauquier Health welcomes new general surgeon Dr. Nathaniel Saint-Preux
Fauquier Health welcomes general surgeon, Nathaniel Saint-Preux, MD, to Fauquier Health’s Northern Virginia Surgical Specialists.
Fauquier Health announced the welcoming of their newest general surgeon, Nathaniel Saint-Preux, MD. Dr. Saint-Preux has joined Fauquier Health’s Northern Virginia Surgical Specialists group, which was recently acquired in the fall of 2022. Dr. Saint-Preux joins board-certified physicians Joseph Brown, MD, FACS, Cynthia Dougherty, MD, and Benjamin Wampler, MD, FACS.
Dr. Saint-Preux graduated from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia in 2013. He completed his Doctor of Medicine at Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C. in 2017. Dr. Saint-Preux then completed his general surgery residency at the Detroit Medical Center/Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan in 2022.
“As a physician I strive every day to develop a deeper understanding of the interaction between health, social, cultural, and environmental issues in our communities,” commented Dr. Saint-Preux. “I enjoy working with my patients to ensure they feel educated about the issues they may be facing, what options they have, and what their future path of wellness could look like.”
Dr. Saint-Preux is trained in minimally invasive robotic surgery and has interests in hernia repair, colonoscopy, upper endoscopy, colorectal, appendectomy, skin lesions/lipomas, thyroid disease, breast procedures, and more. Dr. Saint-Preux has conducted multiple service trips, including outreach in Haiti to provide health care to under-served populations. Giving back to the community and providing cross-cultural care has led to a greater understanding of the health issues facing our world today.
Dr. Saint-Preux is trained in minimally invasive robotic surgery. Pictured here is the da Vinci Xi surgical robot that he is trained to perform minimally-invasive surgery with, in addition to other types of procedures.
Dr. Saint-Preux is accepting new patients at all four locations in Warrenton, Gainesville, Culpeper, and Manassas. The Warrenton office, located at 550 Hospital Drive, can be reached at 540.347.2805. The Gainesville office, located at 7915 Lake Manassas Drive, can be reached at 571.261.2782. The Culpeper office, located at 1100 Sunset Lane, can be reached at 540.812.2937. Lastly, the Manassas office, located at 9001 Digges Road, can also be reached at 571.261.2782. Additional details about Dr. Saint-Preux can be found at FHDoctors.org or FauquierHealth.org.
About Fauquier Health
Fauquier Health is a community health system dedicated to high-quality, patient-centered care in a unique environment that considers the multiple facets of healing and respects the individuality of each and every patient. Located at 500 Hospital Drive in Warrenton, Virginia, Fauquier Health serves the residents of Fauquier and several surrounding counties. It comprises: Fauquier Hospital, a fully-accredited, 97-bed hospital; Fauquier Health Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, a 113-bed long-term care and rehabilitation facility; the Villa at Suffield Meadows, an assisted living facility; the Wound Health Center and a medically supervised Wellness Center offering health and wellness programs. Fauquier Health also operates several physician’s offices, including primary care, generay surgery, OB/GYN, Neurology and more. More information on Fauquier Health is available online at FauquierHealth.org or by calling 540-316-5000.
Regional News
New daily rail service into Tennessee begins in April, expanding port’s reach west and south
Beginning April 1, The Port of Virginia® will expand its westward reach with a new daily rail service between the port’s primary container terminals and Norfolk Southern’s regional intermodal terminal near Memphis.
“It’s an important step west and south for The Port of Virginia,” said Stephen A. Edwards, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. “Both exporters and importers have asked us [Norfolk Southern and the port] to develop a high-quality Memphis rail service.
“When we first discussed this possibility, we agreed consistency was critical to developing a first-class product that provides daily service to and from this market. We have spent the past six months working together to ensure we are both ready and capable to meet customer expectations.”
The railroad’s regional terminal is in Rossville, which is in Southwest Tennessee, and located on Norfolk Southern’s Crescent Corridor route. The terminal is about 40 miles from Memphis, which is an important Midwest intermodal center. Memphis is one of only four cities in the US to be served by five Class I railroads, and according to the Greater Memphis Chamber, cargo moving through Memphis can reach 45 states and Canada and Mexico by rail within two days.
“We’re investing nearly a billion-and-a-half dollars to expand our on-dock rail capabilities, modernize one of our terminals and make our shipping channels the deepest on the US East Coast to create the East Coast’s leading global gateway,” Edwards said. “We are always looking for opportunities to expand into new markets and create demand. It’s important that we continue to collaborate with our long-time rail partner, Norfolk Southern, to create consistent, complimentary rail products to meet the needs of those companies that want to diversify their logistics and supply chains and reach new markets.”
The port is engaged in a $1.4 billion expansion effort called the Gateway Investment Program. This includes expanding the port’s overall annual rail capacity to 1.8 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units); completely renovating the North Berth at Norfolk International Terminals to create the capacity for 800,000 lifts, annually; and deepening the commercial shipping channels to at least 55 feet deep and making them wide enough for two-way traffic of ultra-large container ships.
(The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The VPA owns and through its private operating subsidiary, Virginia International Terminals, LLC (VIT), operates four general cargo facilities Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal and the Virginia Inland Port in Warren County. The VPA leases Virginia International Gateway and Richmond Marine Terminal. A recent economic impact study from The College of William and Mary shows that The Port of Virginia helps to create more than 437,000 jobs and generated $1 billion in total economic impact throughout the Commonwealth on an annual basis.)
Regional News
D.C. Guardian Angels return to the city to patrol Metro following increase in crime
The D.C. Guardian Angels, unarmed volunteer safety patrols dedicated to helping prevent crime in public spaces, are making their return to the Washington area’s Metro system after an increase in reported crimes.
The group is led by John Ayala, who started the Washington chapter in 1989 after previously being a New York City group member.
The D.C. Guardian Angels, volunteers dedicated to keeping public spaces in the city safe, have started patrolling the Metro’s Green Line in an effort to serve as a crime deterrent. (Photo courtesy of the D.C. Guardian Angels)
The Guardian Angels are a New York City-based nonprofit started in 1979 by Curtis Sliwa. Since then, thousands of volunteers have joined the organization in cities nationwide and worldwide.
Ayala moved to Washington from New York City when he was 19 to bring the Guardian Angels to the nation’s capital. During the 1990s, the New York and Washington groups focused on the “crack cocaine era,” Ayala said.
“We were involved with the open-air drug market, trying to get a hold on it. So people in D.C. saw it and said, ‘you know what, we have that same issue here in D.C.,’” Ayala said in an interview with Capital News Service.
Ayala grew the group to about 100 members in the early 1990s, with an average age of around 18. Today, the group is working on trying to keep the Metro safe while recruiting new members with the goal of returning to a core of about 100 people. There are currently 40 members signed up, averaging around 40 years old.
“Now it’s going to get to the point…where history is starting to repeat itself. It’s not the gang violence, it’s not the drugs, but it’s the young people going out there hurting so many people in the community, and people are saying ‘enough is enough,’” Ayala said.
While people in their 40s and 50s may remember the Guardian Angels from the 1990s and early 2000s, Ayala said younger people are less familiar with the group. So part of the Guardian Angels’ efforts is telling the younger generation about the group’s activities and mission, he said.
The Guardian Angels are currently concentrating their efforts on patrolling the Green Line, focusing specifically on the Anacostia and Congress Heights stations. Their goal is to be a deterrent, to observe and to report to Metro Transit Police Department, Ayala said.
Although the MTPD does not directly endorse the Guardian Angels, it “appreciates eyes and ears on the system,” Sherri Ly, Metro media relations manager, said in a statement to CNS.
Despite the MTDP’s efforts, Ayala said, “there are not enough police officers out there.”
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Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser announced a partnership between MTDP and the Metropolitan Police Department early last month, aiming to increase police presence at Metro stations.
While police patrol the stations, Ayala said there are not enough officers to patrol trains. After hearing about the increased police presence, the Guardian Angels are focusing on what is happening on the trains while also monitoring the station platforms.
“We're tired of hearing everybody blaming the mayor, blaming the police chief, blaming the councilman,” Ayala said. “Those people are not the ones out...robbing people, they’re not telling people to rob people. They’re doing the best that they can, but they can't do it alone. It takes a village.”
The safety patrols are recognizable by their red berets and white shirts.
“Prevention is the best cure… so if wearing a recognizable pseudo-uniform can help deter people from getting froggy on public transport, that's the right way for a civilian to help, I think,” said
Christopher Dailey, a Washington resident interested in potentially volunteering with the Guardian Angels.
Dailey rides the Metro about once a week. He recently heard of the Guardian Angels through social media and saw they were looking for volunteers.
“I've seen increasing reports of violence and harassment on the Metro, particularly against women, and I'm a pretty strong and tall guy, so I'd like to think I'd step in and stop some acts like that, but it's easy to vigilante yourself thinking about it in confrontational terms like that,” Dailey said.
In February, there were a total of 195 arrests at various Metro facilities, including buses, Metro rail, and parking lots, compared to 121 arrests in February a year ago, according to data released by the Metro Transit Police Department.
The MTPD reported 569 total crimes in February, an increase of 125 percent over the previous February. Sixty-five percent of the reported crimes in February happened on the Metro rail system.
Overall, crime in Washington’s transit system decreased during 2020 and 2021, reflecting the height of the COVID pandemic. Over the past year, crime rates have started rising again.
A Guardian Angels patrol usually lasts two-and-a-half hours; volunteers are asked to put in eight hours a month.
The D.C. Guardian Angels' goal is to have 100 volunteers by spring. Those interested in volunteering can contact the Guardian Angels at 202-359-0601.
By YESENIA MONTENEGRO
Capital News Service
Local News
Virginia making progress on 55-ft deep channel and becoming the US East Coast’s deepest port
The Port of Virginia® is progressing toward becoming the only US East Coast port with 55-foot-deep channels that are also wide enough to accommodate two-way traffic of ultra-large container vessels.
“It’s an important distinction to have because this sets The Port of Virginia apart from our East Coast peers in a way that cannot be matched,” said Stephen A. Edwards, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. “In less than a year, we’ll be able to handle two-way traffic of the biggest ships afloat. Having the wide channel allows for consistent vessel flow, it will increase our efficiency and further reduce any downtime at our berths.
“Cargo owners, ocean carriers and logistics providers are closely following our progress. Many of the ocean carriers that call Virginia have new, larger vessels that are coming into service within the next year. We are telling them that they can bring those vessels to Virginia without concern for channel width or overhead draft restrictions. We don’t have any bridges in the Norfolk Harbor.”
The biggest section of the 55-foot project is the Thimble Shoal West Channel and the deepening work there is 99 percent finished with full completion this fall; the Thimble Shoal East Channel is 90 percent complete with full completion coming this spring. When the work on Thimble Shoal East is complete, the first section of the two-way channel will be ready for use.
At that time, the port will work with the Virginia Pilots Association, the US Coast Guard and NOAA to update the region’s navigation charts, rules and buoys to reflect the improved channel.
Edwards said this will provide “the first real navigation benefits” to ocean carriers because there will be an area of the channel open to two-way vessel traffic. The project’s companion widening of Thimble Shoal West is set to begin in this spring with completion in the early fall. When this work is complete, the port will be finished with its share of the deepening and widening project Edwards said.
“In parallel to our effort, our partners in this project, the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Norfolk District office, are making progress on the inner harbor parts of this project,” Edwards said. “The contract for work on the inner harbor has been signed and there is dredge work underway in the Newport News Channel and work on the Norfolk Harbor Channel is scheduled to start by year’s end.
“The Norfolk District has been great partner in this effort and that team is working with a sense of urgency to maintain the momentum that we have going. They have been integral to the success of this project and the end is in sight as a result of our partnership.”
The project’s dredge work began in December 2019, nearly two-and-a-half years ahead of schedule. The port’s preparation for the project, its collaboration with the US Army Corps of Engineers, the support of elected officials and the state’s willingness to fully-fund the project ahead of the federal investment were factors behind the early start of construction and ongoing progress, Edwards said.
The work includes dredging the shipping channels to 55 feet – with deeper ocean approaches – and widening them up to 1,400 feet in specific areas. When dredging is complete in 2024, the commercial channels serving the Norfolk Harbor will be able to safely accommodate passage of two, ultra-large container vessels.
The federal government and the port agreed to a 50-50 cost share of the project at its outset in 2015 when the US Army Corps of Engineers began evaluating the economic value of a deeper and wider Norfolk Harbor and commercial shipping channel. The cost of the project is $450 million.
The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The VPA owns and through its private operating subsidiary, Virginia International Terminals, LLC (VIT), operates four general cargo facilities Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal and the Virginia Inland Port in Warren County. The VPA leases Virginia International Gateway and Richmond Marine Terminal. A recent economic impact study from The College of William and Mary shows that The Port of Virginia helps to create more than 437,000 jobs and generated $1 billion in total economic impact throughout the Commonwealth on an annual basis.
Local News
Dunkin’ second annual scholarship program to award $125,000 to DMV high school and college students
Dunkin’® and its DMV franchisees today announced the return of its Dunkin’ Regional Scholarship Program which will award $125,000 in scholarships to high school and college students throughout the DMV.
In partnership with Scholarship America®, Dunkin’ will award 50 students throughout the DMV region with a $2,500 academic scholarship to an accredited two- or four-year college, university, or vocational-technical school of their choice in Fall 2023. Dunkin’s DMV Regional Scholarship Program will be available to current part-time and full-time undergraduate students and high school seniors. Recipients will be selected based on their academic record, demonstrated leadership skills, and overall commitment to their school and the local community.
“My fellow Dunkin’ franchisees of the DMV area and I are excited to again recognize hardworking students in our local communities with our second annual Dunkin’ Regional Scholarship Program,” said Parag Patel, DMV-area Dunkin’ Franchisee. “Dunkin’ is dedicated to the local communities that give so much to us. Scholarship recipients exhibit all the qualities of leadership we seek to nurture in young people and Dunkin’ is proud to help them and their families afford the significant investment that higher education represents.”
Applications for the Dunkin’ Regional Scholarship Program will be accepted through April 13, 2023. Applicants must be high school seniors or current undergraduate students who plan to enroll in a part-time or full-time undergraduate course of study at an accredited two-year- or four-year college, university, or vocational-technical school in Fall 2023.
Applicants must reside and/or be currently enrolled in college in one of the below regions to be considered. For more information or to apply, visit learnmore.scholarsapply.org/dunkinbaltimoredc.
Washington, D.C. Counties: Washington, D.C., Charles (MD), Frederick (MD), Montgomery (MD), Prince George’s (MD), St. Mary’s (MD), Washington (MD), Arlington (VA), Clarke (VA), Fairfax (VA), Frederick (VA), Loudoun (VA), Prince William (VA), Shenandoah (VA), Spotsylvania (VA), Stafford (VA), Warren (VA), Berkeley (WV), Jefferson (WV)
Maryland Counties: Anne Arundel (MD), Baltimore (MD), Baltimore City (MD), Calvert (MD), Carroll (MD), Cecil (MD), Harford (MD), Howard (MD), Kent (MD), Queen Anne’s (MD), Talbot (MD)
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