© 2025 WFAE

Mailing Address:
WFAE 90.7
P.O. Box 896890
Charlotte, NC 28289-6890
Tax ID: 56-1803808
90.7 Charlotte 93.7 Southern Pines 90.3 Hickory 106.1 Laurinburg
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Charlotte-area hospitals implement visitor restrictions as respiratory viruses increase

Due to a sustained increase in respiratory viruses locally, Atrium Health is implementing temporary visitor restrictions starting Tuesday.

Children under 12 should not visit acute care hospitals, emergency departments, rehabilitation units and facilities, behavioral health, inpatient hospice, infusion centers and certain cancer areas including bone marrow transplant clinics. Visitors will also be asked to wear masks when in areas where direct patient care is provided and in emergency department waiting areas.

“By taking these steps, everyone in the community can contribute to slowing the spread of respiratory illnesses this season,” said Dr. Katie Passaretti, chief infection prevention officer for Advocate Health, of which Atrium Health is a subsidiary, in a statement. “These preventive measures are simple but powerful in helping us protect ourselves and those most vulnerable.”

Woody is a Charlotte native who came to WFAE from the world of NASCAR where he was host of NASCAR Today for MRN Radio as well as a pit reporter, turn announcer and host of the NASCAR Live pre race show for Cup Series races. Before that, he was a news anchor at WBT radio in Charlotte, a traffic reporter, editor of The Charlotte Observer’s University City Magazine, News/Sports Director at WEGO-AM in Concord and a Swiss Army knife in local cable television. His first job after graduating from Appalachian State University was news reporter at The Daily Independent in Kannapolis. Along the way he’s covered everything from murder trials and a national political convention to high school sports and minor league baseball.