MONROE, Wis. — Green County is on track to see its highest monthly COVID-19 case total ever, forcing its health department to move to “crisis” contact tracing standards, the agency said Tuesday.
In the first 15 days of the month, the county recorded 349 COVID-19 cases. The health department said in a news release the climbing case numbers are more than they can contact trace, leading them to prioritize contact tracing efforts focused on families with school-aged children, who until recently have not been eligible for COVID-19 vaccines.
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The department said it is working with local school districts to help prevent further spread and has also begun to rely on a state contact tracing team to fill gaps. County contact tracers will reach out to other residents who test positive for the virus “as (they) are able to.”
“Green County Public Health is asking for the assistance of residents, businesses, schools and community organizations to slow this surge of cases,” the release said. “We ask this of you as fellow community members of Green County. COVID-19 does not have to be spreading at the rate that it is.
RELATED: Wisconsin records nearly 4K new COVID-19 cases, highest total since Dec. 2020
Statewide, Wisconsin recorded its highest number of new COVID-19 cases in more than 11 months on Tuesday, nearing 4,000 new cases.
COVID-19 case activity in Green County is considered very high, one of 62 Wisconsin counties in the second-highest category. Eight are considered to have critically high spread, while two — Dane and Menominee — are listed as having high activity.
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