The United States has passed 400,000 COVID-related deaths and over 25 million positive cases. Nevertheless, it is no secret that COVID fatigue has set in—perhaps due to the new year, winter doldrums, or any number of other factors. Many businesses and individuals have relaxed their safety protocols, and the Wisconsin State Senate yesterday voted to eliminate the mask mandate (this measure must still pass the Assembly to become effective).
Unfortunately, it takes just one employee (or relative of an employee) to cause a significant impact. For instance, one Oregon employee who reported to work with COVID symptomscaused hundreds of others to quarantine, resulting in seven deaths. A school district in Atlanta vowed to stay open until it ran out of staff, which it did—1,000 positive cases and 11,000 quarantined later. A Kenosha teacher contracted COVID in the workplace, passing it on to both her mother and her husband (who died).
In Wisconsin, the Department of Health Services (“DHS”) initiates an investigation upon finding two or more positive tests in a workplace. In December, nearly 2,300 workplaces had triggered a DHS investigation, including over 1,000 active cases at the time of reporting. Since its December report, DHS’s investigation data indicates those numbers have increased substantially (2,700 active cases as of last week).
Stay safe and do let us know what you are seeing and experiencing.