PRESS RELEASE (WHTC-AM/FM) — Ottawa County health officials issued a statement Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2020, noting the number of people being diagnosed with COVD-19 continues it’s upward trend, “with no indication of decreasing.”
With a sustained community-wide spread of the virus, health officials are emphasizing the importance of taking extra precautions to slow the spread of COVID-19. As of Tuesday, more than 1,200 Ottawa County resident are ill with the virus, which can be deadly. Allegan County health officials are reporting a similar upward trend, with nearly 350 residents now diagnosed with the virus. Both countries are hard-pressed to keep up with the need for contact tracing — alerting anyone who has been exposed to the virus, so they can get tested and do the best they can to avoid exposing others.
Clarification Needed and Messages to Emphasize:
- COVID-19 is real and very prevalent in Ottawa County. It affects all of us even if you may not feel sick. You could still be a carrier of the virus and get others sick.
- COVID-19 can result in serious long-term complications, hospitalizations and even death, especially to those who may already have health complications and the elderly. Scientists are still researching the long-term impacts on health, even in those who were healthy or had mild illness.
- Life is not back to normal yet. We are still in a pandemic. We cannot go about our normal lives as if the virus does not exist. Extreme caution needs to happen among us all especially when at school, work, places of worship and anywhere within the community. This includes wearing a mask, limiting gatherings and avoiding crowds as mandated by the state. Families should have a plan in place if schools or businesses may have limitations or restrictions.
- Public health decisions and actions are data-driven and not based on the political landscape. Data are gathered and analyzed by state and local epidemiologists, medical directors and other public health officials to inform mitigation strategies.
- Social media posts aren’t always reliable sources for health information. Seek the facts from scientific research and the expertise of medical and public health officials.
- It takes all the disease prevention measures working together by all of us to slow the spread of the virus – frequently washing hands and disinfecting surfaces, wearing a mask, keeping a physical distance from others and staying home when you do not feel well.
- Testing more people for COVID-19 does not inflate the numbers or make the situation seem worse. Testing is a critical tool to identify where the virus is spreading to contain it through isolation and quarantine and to prevent others from getting infected. Find testing sites in Ottawa County: English I Spanish.
- Contact tracing is not an infringement on your rights or an act of the government getting involved in your privacy. It is a critical tool-and time-tested tool-that goes back more than 120 years to identify those who have been infected and who they may have possibly infected. This public health-community partnership action is needed to contain the virus, and prevent further disease spread and keep our community safe. Help by connecting us with those who may have been exposed.
- Asking you to wear a mask is not against the law. It is good infection prevention and practiced routinely in health care settings. Michigan law imposes on state and local health departments a duty to continually and diligently endeavor to prevent disease, prolong life and promote public health. Even with Governor Whitmer’s emergency powers removed, as provided in MCL 333.2253, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Service director’s emergency procedures are not limited to the Public Health Code. Wearing a mask and physical distancing are needful measures when we don’t have pharmaceutical interventions (a vaccine or a medicine).
