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.
Public Health Manager/Local Health Officer, Rose Kohout announced that as of 2:00pm Wednesday, November 11th the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) confirmed that in the state of Wisconsin there were 285,891 confirmed cases of COVID-19, 1,949,868 have tested negative, there were 2,457 deaths, and 13,507 hospitalizations due to COVID-19. Of those that tested positive for COVID-19 in the state of Wisconsin, 4% have been hospitalized.
Emergency Operations partners have decided to offer more up-to-date local data on the condition of our county that might not match the numbers offered by the State. Public Health Manager/Local Health Officer, Rose Kohout announced that as of 8:00am Thursday, November 11th there are 650 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Richland County, 7,247 have tested negative, there are 231 active cases, and 408 individuals who had tested positive have been released from quarantine. Of those 650 individuals who tested positive, 639 individuals have been recovering at home, 31 have been hospitalized at some point, and there were 11 COVID-19 related deaths.
FREE COVID-19 community testing events in Richland County have been expanded. The University of Wisconsin-Platteville Richland began offering FREE COVID-19 testing events on WEDNESDAYS from 9am-6pm in the Classroom Building located on the Richland Center campus. All participants must register for this testing event at www.DoINeedaCOVID19Test.com. Drive-thru community testing events continue to be offered weekly on MONDAYS from 9am-1pm and THURSDAYS from 9am-4pm at the Richland County Fairgrounds. Appointments are not required, but it is requested that those who wish to be tested pre-register at https://register.covidconnect.wi.gov. Tests will be available on a FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVE basis. The expanded FREE COVID-19 Testing schedule for events offered in Richland County are as follows:
| Wednesday, November 11th | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Thursday, November 12th | 9am-4pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | WI National Guard Event |
| Monday, November 16th | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
| Wednesday, November 18th | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Thursday, November 19th | 9am-4pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | WI National Guard Event |
| Monday, November 23rd | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
| Wednesday, November 25th | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Monday, November 30th | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
| Wednesday, December 2nd | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Thursday, December 3rd | 9am-4pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | WI National Guard Event |
| Monday, December 7th | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
| Wednesday, December 9th | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Monday, December 14th | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
| Wednesday, December 16th | 9am-6pm | Classroom Building | UW-Platteville Richland Event |
| Monday, December 21st | 9am-1pm | Richland County Fairgrounds | Richland County Event |
This schedule is subject to change. Richland County continues to research location options to offer a drive-thru testing site into the 2021 winter months.
The Richland County Events on MONDAYS are only for Richland County residents who meet specific testing criteria. The UW-Platteville Richland Events on WEDNESDAYS are open to Richland County residents and those in our surrounding communities (age 5 and older), and do not need to meet any criteria to be tested. The WI National Guard Events on THURSDAYS are open to Richland County residents and those in our surrounding communities (age 5 and older) who are experiencing one or more symptoms of COVID-19 and for asymptomatic individuals per Public Health recommendations.
The Richland Hospital continues to offer COVID-19 drive-thru testing from 11 am to 4 pm Monday thru Friday for hospital & clinic patients displaying COVID-19 symptoms or to those that have a confirmed exposure. All persons requesting testing will need to call the Richland Hospital and be registered BEFORE arriving at the drive-thru. The Richland Hospital Clinic campus continues to offer 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 for any COVID-19 symptoms should call the hospital main number (608) 647-6321 or clinic main number (608) 647-6161 BEFORE coming to the facility.
Individuals who have been tested for COVID-19 WILL receive their results from a testing site or healthcare provider. However, due to record high numbers of COVID-19 cases, Public Health has reached capacity and may not call you to complete a contact tracing investigation. For this reason, we ask that any newly diagnosed person with COVID-19 begin to isolate themselves immediately and go to the Richland County COVID-19 webpage at https://covid.co.richland.wi.us/if-you-are-sick-or-have-been-exposed/ in order to receive isolation and contact tracing notification guidance.
The Ithaca School District announced that they will transition to virtual learning November 16th – December 7th. The Richland School District transitioned to virtual learning until January 11, 2021. Staffing levels in both school districts continue to be closely monitored and additional school board meetings will be held which could result in an early return to face-to-face instruction or an extension of virtual learning.
Richland County Community Partners shared the status of their individual organization’s emergency response, reviewed staffing levels and PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) inventory, and discussed priority topics to assist with preventing the further transmission of COVID-19 in our community.
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://arcg.is/0DCu5D. For the most up-to-date COVID-19 information, follow Richland County Health & Human Services on Facebook or consult the following websites:
- 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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