Richland Center, WI: A virtual Emergency Operations Center meeting was held this morning to share information between Richland County officials and community partners in a joint response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Emergency Management Director, Darin Gudgeon reported that starting the week of July 6th virtual EOC briefings will only be held on Thursdays at 9am. It was noted that this reduced schedule would be monitored and modified as needed.
Public Health Manager/Local Health Officer, Rose Kohout announced that as of 2:00pm Wednesday, July 1st the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) confirmed that in the state of Wisconsin there were 29,199 confirmed cases of COVID-19,551,607 have tested negative, there were 786 deaths, and 3,482 hospitalizations due to COVID-19. Of those that tested positive for COVID-19 in the state of Wisconsin, 12% have been hospitalized. There remain 15 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Richland County, 1,501 have tested negative, there have been 4 deaths, and 11 individuals who had tested positive have been released from quarantine. It was noted that Richland County Public Health and Richland County Emergency Management are preparing to offer local community COVID-19 testing as soon as possible. Additional details will be released as soon as they are available.
The Community Services Building and all Health and Human Services operations will reopen to the public starting Monday, July 6th. However, many of the services will continue to be provided via telephone, video-chat, telehealth, and in-person meetings in the community when appropriate. Clients and members of the public may continue to call (608) 647-8821 for assistance and inquiries. It is recommended that individuals coming into the public building wear a mask.
The Richland Hospital Clinic campus continues to reopen their facility for voluntary medical procedures and Primary Care visits, while also continuing to offer Tele-Health patient visits. Richland Hospital Clinic patients needing hands-on medical care should call the hospital main number (608) 647-6321 or clinic main number (608) 647-6161 before coming to the facility. Anyone entering the facility will be asked to wear a mask. If possible, please bring your own mask with you.
If you have a COVID-19 question that you want our community partners to answer, please call Richland County Health & Human Services at 608-647-8821 and submit your question to the receptionist or email the question to rchhs@co.richland.wi.us. Citizens are encouraged to check out the Richland County COVID-19 Dashboard which offers helpful data to better understand the impact of the pandemic globally and locally: https://covid.co.richland.wi.us/2020/04/21/richland-county-covid-19-dashboard/. For the most up-to-date COVID-19 information, follow Richland County Health & Human Services on Facebook or consult the following websites:
- Richland County: https://covid.co.richland.wi.us
- The Greater Richland Area Chamber of Commerce: www.gorcchamber.com
- Wisconsin Department of Health Services: www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/
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