CCHD reinforces need to wear masks, abide by quarantine

Cloud County Health Department (CCHD) administrator Brandi Bray reported that as of today, Cloud County has had a total of 31 individuals test positive for COVID-19. That is an increase of one positive case in the past two days.
Of the 31 positive tests, 20 of those individuals have recovered. There are currently 11 active virus cases in the county.
Bray said that a total of 504 negative tests have been performed.
As of July 8, the county is still waiting for the results of 55 pending tests.
Bray stated that there are no current hospitalizations due to COVID-19.
In an interview with the Blade-Empire, Bray noted that quarantine has ended or will end today for most of the 150+ people who were notified that they were potentially exposed to the virus during the recent outbreak. But Bray also stressed the importance of people quarantining themselves for the full 14-day time period.
"After a few days or even a week, people might be fed up with being in quarantine if they have no symptoms. But we're seeing that most people develop symptoms seven to nine days after exposure."
Bray reinforced the importance of wearing masks. "Too many people with the virus will not show any symptoms. Wearing a mask prevents you from spreading germs to others, so it's very important to wear a mask to help protect others. I know they're inconvenient and bothersome, but we're talking about the health and safety of the entire community, especially those who are most vulnerable to the virus.”
Bray also announced that the CCHD will be hiring a full-time disease investigator, through a grant from the Kansas Department of Health & Environment (KDHE).
"This person will handle a lot of the contact tracing and notifications," Bray said. "This will free up our staff to devote their full time to the other tasks at hand."
The CCHD is taking applications for this position until July 17.  Interested individuals can call the CCHD to get an email application. The phone number is 243-8140.