| Opening Note
The Well is where conversations happen at the Capitol — where legislators, lobbyists, and staff compare notes, test the mood, and figure out what matters. This briefing is built the same way: a fast, disciplined read on what is moving in West Virginia government before the day begins.
STATEHOUSE & POLITICS
Republicans prepare unprecedented vote to disavow Pritt
The West Virginia Republican Executive Committee is expected to vote Saturday on formally disavowing former Delegate Elliott Pritt, marking the first use of that process in the state party’s history. Party Chairman Josh Holstein said 88 committee members signed the petition seeking the action against Pritt, who resigned from the House and faces a federal charge of enticement involving a minor.
If approved, the party will submit its decision to the State Election Commission, which has scheduled an Aug. 7 meeting to consider whether Pritt should be disqualified as a candidate. The Fayette County Republican Executive Committee plans to meet Monday to begin reviewing potential replacement candidates.
The state committee also is expected to consider a bylaws amendment limiting debate over whether Republican primaries should remain closed to one summer meeting before each presidential election. The Pritt vote represents a material development beyond the party’s earlier condemnation: Republicans are now moving through the formal process that could remove him from the ballot and permit the selection of a replacement.
HEALTH FACILITIES & OVERSIGHT
Majestic Care told West Virginia lawmakers it is progressing toward construction of new long-term care hospitals required under its purchase of four formerly state-operated facilities, but the company has not publicly identified where the new hospitals will be built.
The state completed the $60 million sale of hospitals in Beckley, Fairmont, Terra Alta and West Columbia to Marx Development Group and its Majestic Care subsidiary in October. The agreement includes an additional commitment of as much as $80 million and requires the company to develop at least three replacement facilities according to contractual milestones.
Lawmakers remain concerned because the agreement does not require Majestic Care to rebuild in the communities where the existing hospitals operate. Moving a facility could affect vulnerable patients, local employment and surrounding services, particularly in rural counties. Company officials have said their goal is to construct facilities near the current locations, but legislators are seeking firm site decisions and assurances that existing communities will retain access to care.
STATE GOVERNMENT & HUMAN SERVICES
State Treasurer Larry Pack called the early closure of West Virginia’s School Clothing Allowance Program “unacceptable” after the Department of Human Services stopped taking applications because the available funding had been allocated.
The program opened July 20 following a nearly three-week delay and was supposed to accept applications through Aug. 15 unless its funding ran out first. It provides eligible low-income families with $200 per child for school clothing. Pack’s criticism intensifies questions about the administration’s spending priorities because the state ended fiscal 2026 with a $370 million general-revenue surplus.
The Morrisey administration has said the clothing program’s difficulties stem from a structural shortfall in the federally supported Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. The general-revenue surplus and TANF funding are separate accounts, but Pack’s comments increase pressure on state leaders to identify additional resources for families unable to apply before the program closed.
AGENCIES, PUBLIC SERVICES & RECOVERY
State opens nearly $14 million in rural connected-care funding
The Morrisey administration announced two grant opportunities totaling about $14 million for remote patient monitoring and virtual-care services across West Virginia.
Approximately $4.9 million is designated for monitoring patients in hospitals, while about $9.1 million would support outpatient and home-based monitoring. The programs are intended to expand care for patients with chronic conditions including diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity. Applications will be handled through the state’s wvOASIS procurement system.
The funding is supported entirely by a federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services award. West Virginia received approximately $199.5 million through the Rural Health Transformation Program, making the new grants an early indication of how the state intends to deploy that broader federal allocation.
Lewis County school damage approaches $6 million as reopening plans remain unsettled
Lewis County school officials estimate that flooding caused nearly $6 million — and potentially more — in damage to school property. Robert L. Bland Middle School sustained the most serious damage, including contaminated mud inside the building and damage to athletic fields and other facilities.
Superintendent Robin Lewis said the preferred plan is to reopen all county schools Aug. 20, but that schedule depends in part on the availability and timing of federal disaster assistance. The district is developing an alternative plan while coordinating with state officials, and no final reopening arrangement has been announced.
The estimate gives state and federal officials a clearer measure of the public-education costs associated with the July flooding and establishes FEMA assistance as a critical factor in the district’s recovery timeline.
Weather service confirms nine tornadoes from July 21 outbreak
The National Weather Service has confirmed that at least nine tornadoes touched down in West Virginia during the July 21 storm outbreak, the second-highest single-day total recorded in the state. The record remains 10 tornadoes on April 2, 2024.
Several of the storms crossed the Ohio River into Pleasants and Tyler counties, damaging campers, communication towers and trees. The tornado outbreak occurred as separate storms produced historic flooding in Lewis and Upshur counties.
The revised count broadens the geographic scope of the disaster response and could affect local damage assessments and applications for state or federal recovery assistance.
West Virginia Lottery records sixth consecutive billion-dollar year
The West Virginia Lottery reported more than $1.33 billion in gross revenue during the fiscal year that ended June 30, an increase of approximately $58 million from fiscal 2025. It was the sixth consecutive year in which revenue exceeded $1 billion and the 24th billion-dollar year in the Lottery’s 25 most recent fiscal years.
Lottery officials attributed the growth to large multistate jackpots, promotions tied to the agency’s 40th anniversary and continued participation in iLottery and online gaming. Gross lottery revenue is not the same as the amount ultimately transferred to state programs, but the results indicate continued strength in one of West Virginia’s major dedicated revenue systems.
WVU to take full ownership of University Place housing complex
West Virginia University will assume full ownership of the University Place student apartment complex in Morgantown under a settlement resolving litigation filed in 2024.
The agreement dismisses the remaining claims and counterclaims with prejudice, terminates the existing ground lease and related subleases, and retires the project’s financing. WVU said student housing operations will continue without interruption. The settlement contains no admission of liability and does not affect the separate University Park complex at Evansdale.
The agreement ends a dispute involving a significant student-housing asset and consolidates the university’s control over the property, although detailed financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
FEDERAL WATCH
U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said negotiations over the Protect College Sports Act will resume when Congress returns in September, despite the SEC and Big Ten declining to endorse the legislation during meetings Thursday.
The bipartisan bill would grant the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption, strengthening its authority to enforce eligibility and transfer rules and impose restrictions on athletic-department spending. The Senate Commerce Committee advanced the measure in June, but the approaching August recess and the conferences’ failure to take a position have delayed further action. Capito, a co-sponsor, said support from the SEC and Big Ten will be important because of the measure’s potential effects on their member institutions.
Medicare drug-plan subsidy will end after 2026
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will discontinue a temporary subsidy that has limited premium increases for stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription-drug plans. The subsidy will remain in effect through 2026 but will not continue for the 2027 plan year.
Approximately 25 million people nationwide are enrolled in stand-alone Part D plans. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz said the agency expects most beneficiaries’ monthly premiums to increase by less than $10, although actual effects will vary by plan and location. Insurers are expected to release their 2027 premiums in September.
The change does not eliminate Medicare’s annual cap on beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket prescription costs. That cap is $2,100 in 2026 and is projected to rise to $2,400 in 2027. West Virginia beneficiaries will need to compare plan-specific premiums and coverage once the new rates are released.
PUBLIC HEALTH
West Virginia health officials have confirmed a measles case in Barbour County, prompting doctors and local health departments to urge residents to verify that they are current on the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
Measles spreads through the air and is so contagious that as many as nine out of 10 unprotected people exposed to an infected person may contract it. Physicians said community vaccination rates generally need to remain near 95% to prevent sustained transmission. Children typically receive their first MMR dose between 12 and 15 months and a second dose between ages 4 and 6.
The case comes amid a nationwide resurgence that has produced more than 2,300 confirmed infections in 2026, exceeding the total reported during all of 2025. Health officials advised people who may have been exposed to follow local public-health instructions and contact medical providers before entering a health care facility if symptoms develop.
DATES TO WATCH
Saturday, Aug. 1: West Virginia Republican Executive Committee vote on disavowing Pritt and proposed changes governing debate over closed primaries.
Monday, Aug. 3: Fayette County Republican officials plan to review potential candidates to replace Pritt.
Friday, Aug. 7: State Election Commission meeting on Pritt’s possible disqualification.
Thursday, Aug. 20: Lewis County’s target date for reopening schools, subject to building conditions and recovery funding.
September: Expected release of 2027 Medicare Part D plan premiums. |
