Health Department: All Active COVID-19 Cases Have Been Released From Isolation

The Washington County Health Department said Tuesday morning that all 18 of the previously lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases have been released from isolation orders and there have been no new cases reported at this time.

Administrator Elizabeth Lehde said that the two cases are now able to resume all cases as the department follows up with any new cases as well as those identified as close contact.

There have been 310 negative results reported to WCHD, and the summary of the positive cases are no active and no deaths.

Lehde also announced that there will be new requirements of a negative test for medical procedures and for individuals returning to work who will be counted. Lehde said while the department does not always receive the reason that testing is performed, the health department staff “have been reviewing all results and removing duplicate counts and antibody test results from the numbers we have released to the public.”

Lehde told the Nashville News that any possible reopening of the county must be done carefully.

“The curve looks different in every county and every state and is difficult to analyze at this point,” Lehde said. “Where one area sees it flattening because of cases early on, another may just be seeing its first increase and infection spreads quickly.  The other consideration that makes it hard to analyze the flattening is what lies in the coming months.  The ability of flattening the rate of infection is also directly related to the activity of the community and its members.  As we look forward to the next phase of recovery, we must do so responsibly to prevent a spike in infections. Current recommendations of social distancing, hand washing, and staying home when sick will continue to be necessary in the coming months. Our county has been doing great things. We recognize it has not been easy and we thank everyone for what they are doing to keep our community safe. ”

Illinois Department of Public Health is posting number of cases by zip code for those having more than five (5) cases.  This information, as well as case and test counts, can be found at http://dph.illinois.gov/covid19/covid19-statistics.

If you are contacted by the health department, return calls quickly.  The health department is working hard to identify those at risk and to reduce the spread of COVID-19.  These tracking practices help public health officials determine when, where, how, and who is most at risk of transmitting and contracting Coronavirus.  As we move forward in resuming activities, this information will be more important than ever to understand what will be safe to do and what puts us most at risk.

For testing, contact your healthcare provider or find where open testing sites are locally at https://coronavirus.illinois.gov/s/testing-sites

Guidance, information, and infographics for Phase 3 of the Restore Illinois Plan can be found at www.illinois.gov/businessguidelines.