Northern Virginia health care provider Inova has returned to its “emergency status” in response to the rising number of COVID-19 cases and the volume of patients they have seen as a result.

As part of this reactivation — which took effect on Jan. 3 at 5 p.m. — the hospital system reopened its COVID-19 Coordination Center and hospital command centers. They are staffed seven days a week with a multidisciplinary team of experts working together to form a coordinated response to the pandemic.

Inova said shifting to emergency status will allow it to act with more flexibility “to adapt our standard operations as needed in this dynamic and evolving environment.”

“Our patients can be assured that Inova is equipped to handle the current surge, as we have done over the past two years, and we have the resources to continue providing seamless, world-class care to our community,” the hospital said in a statement.

Inova asked the community to do its part in preventing hospital overcrowding by getting vaccinated and boosted, if eligible, and by following health safety measures such as indoor masking and social distancing.

They also said that those who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms should not go to Inova emergency rooms for COVID-19 testing, as they said they will be prioritizing patients with more critical medical conditions.