People met with busy tone when trying to place cellphone calls in Fairfax Co.

By Zeke Hartner
April 16, 2020 | 2:18 PM

A network issue has been reported in Fairfax County, Virginia, causing intermittent issues with wireless phone calls.

People are reporting hearing a busy signal when using their cellphone for calls.

A WTOP listener reported similar issues in Montgomery County, Maryland, shortly after the issues in Fairfax County were reported.

Montgomery County police’s Emergency Communications Center said they had conducted tests with the four major wireless providers and did not see any issues. Montgomery County residents do not have the option to text emergency services and instead should place a call on a landline if experiencing cellphone issues.

In the case of an emergency, D.C. and Fairfax County suggest sending a text to 911 or calling the number on a landline.

This is a developing story. Stay with WTOP for the latest.

Va. health dept. improves nursing home inspection backlog, reforms sanction criteria for facilities

By Virginia Mercury
August 22, 2026 | 8:37 PM

Stories of neglect in care or unsanitary living situations have plagued several of Virginia’s nursing home facilities in recent years and data backs up a lapse in oversight by state agencies. With reform efforts underway, the Virginia Department of Health officials said they aim to adopt sanction criteria by the end of the year to rein in bad actors and get troubled facilities back on track. As of July, 58% of Virginia’s nursing homes were overdue for inspections and 68 of Virginia’s 289 nursing homes were found to have serious deficiencies, according to ProPublica. Several of the state’s flagged facilities with numerous deficiencies also had high staffing turnover rates. The issue has been salient among various healthcare spaces, including VDH.

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