RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia health officials on Thursday confirmed at least the second case of a person infected with the new coronavirus in an assisted living facility, this one in the Washington suburbs.

Elderly people, especially those with underlying health conditions are particularly vulnerable to the virus that has upended daily life around the world. About half of the approximately 150 deaths in the U.S. from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, have been in Washington state, where dozens in a suburban Seattle nursing home have died.

The Fairfax County Health Department reported that a resident of The Kensington Falls Church, an assisted living and memory care facility, tested positive. The man has been in isolation since he developed symptoms of respiratory illness on Saturday, a statement said.

“When COVID-19 occurs in a setting where there are many older people with underlying health conditions, we are concerned," Fairfax County Health Director Dr. Gloria Addo-Ayensu said in a statement. “We’ll be working very closely with the facility over the coming days to protect other residents and staff and prevent further spread.”

Virginia now has more than 90 confirmed cases of the virus, according to the latest health department figures. Among the new cases reported Thursday was a pediatric patient and a medical provider at Fort Eustis who recently returned from overseas travel. The state's death toll remained at two.

Gov. Ralph Northam and other state officials announced a series of actions Thursday intended to combat the pandemic and its economic impacts. Those included some modest tax relief measures.

Businesses can submit requests to the state to delay payments until next month on February sales taxes that were coming due Friday. And individual and corporate state income tax payments have been pushed back a month from May 1 to June 1, said Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne.

Other changes impact law enforcement. Officials said the governor had issued guidance to criminal justice officials, encouraging steps like modified sentences for low-level offenders and the use of summonses instead of custodial arrests, in order to reduce the number of interactions and jail populations.

State police also have been directed to suspend enforcement of motor vehicle inspections for the next 60 days, said Northam.

Thursday's news about the Falls Church patient comes after state health officials on Tuesday announced the first known instance of someone at a long-term care facility testing positive for the virus. Westminster Canterbury Richmond said that patient was being treated at a hospital after returning from travel to Florida.

The Falls Church facility said in a statement Thursday that seven other residents displayed respiratory symptoms, but test results Wednesday showed they do not have the virus.

Two staff members are awaiting test results, and the facility has taken additional precautions, including monitoring residents and team members for symptoms, sanitizing and limiting visitors, the statement said.

A spokeswoman for the facility declined to answer questions from The Associated Press.

For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, like pneumonia. Virginia officials have asked anyone 65 or older or anyone with chronic health conditions to self-quarantine.

The worldwide death toll crept toward 10,000 Thursday as the total number of infections topped 220,000, including nearly 85,000 people who have recovered.

Across Virginia, residents continued to adjust to a new reality. Much of the state's workforce has been encouraged to work from home, and schools remained closed. Many districts were distributing meals to families who depend on free school breakfasts and lunches, including Fairfax County — one of the nation's largest school divisions — which added deliveries by school bus Thursday.

Many colleges that previously announced at least a temporary move to online classes extended those plans this week through the end of the semester, including the University of Virginia, William & Mary, Virginia Commonwealth University and Old Dominion University.

A number of hospitals and health care systems announced changes in line with those being taken around the nation, including limiting visitors and rescheduling elective procedures.

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Associated Press writer Alan Suderman contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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