COURTESY ONEIDA COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT

The Oneida County Health Department is reminding community members that attending large gatherings of any kind is not recommended at this time.  The risk of contracting COVID-19 is greater with larger groups of people, especially if other precautions like physical distancing or face coverings are not being practiced.  If you choose to attend any gatherings, you can take steps to protect yourself and those around you by wearing a face covering, practicing social distancing, and washing your hands.

OCHD is reporting an increase in people testing positive for COVID-19 in Oneida County and in Northern Wisconsin.  Locally, OCHD has noted an increase in positive test results in people under 30, people who have participated in organized sports, and people who have attended group gatherings.

One of the challenges in this pandemic is the easy spread of COVID-19 before symptoms occur or among asymptomatic carriers.  While it’s reassuring when people have mild or no symptoms, it makes it very difficult to keep the illness from spreading further in the community.

All community members and visitors should continue to follow precautions as the COVID-19 response relies on the willingness of residents to comply with public health recommendations.  The public should continue to follow these preventive steps to protect our families, neighbors, and communities from the spread of this virus, including:

• Avoiding social gatherings of any size, with people of all ages who do not live together (including playdates and sleepovers, parties, large family dinners, visitors and non-essential workers in your house), especially if other precautions are not being taken;

• Practicing physical distancing when out in the community by staying 6 feet away from others;

• Wearing cloth face coverings;

• Taking extra precautions to protect high-risk individuals;

• Frequent and thorough hand washing with soap and water;

• Covering coughs and sneezes (into sleeve, elbow, or tissue, and not hands);

• Regularly cleaning high-touch surfaces;

•  Not shaking hands;

• Avoiding touching your face;

• Staying at home as much as possible, avoiding travel outside of your community

This is a rapidly evolving situation.  We are in this together.  We can choose to protect ourselves and each other, and thereby protect our community and economy, by changing our behavior in accordance with the actions listed above.

Thank you for your willingness to do your part in slowing the spread of COVID-19 and protecting the health and safety of our community.

This is a rapidly evolving situation and information may change. To read the latest information about COVID-19 check the Oneida County Health Department website (oneidacountypublichealth.org) or Facebook page (facebook.com/OneidaCountyHealthDepartment/), the Department of Health Services (DHS) website (https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19/index.htm) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html ).