SM County: West End COVID Cases Up Amidst Loosening Restrictions!

03 Jun SM County: West End COVID Cases Up Amidst Loosening Restrictions!

San Miguel County strongly suggests staying home when symptomatic or exposed to Covid-19.

For corona vaccine info, visit here.

For up-to-date coronavirus information, visit here.

For free coronavirus testing opportunities, visit here.

For more information regarding the updated public health order, visit the county’s COVID page: bit.ly/smccovidpage.

For all Covid blogs from San Miguel County, go here.

San Miguel County Public Health has identified a recent surge in COVID positives in the county’s West End over the last two weeks. Since May 19, 18 residents have tested positive for the virus, 15 of whom reside in the west end of the county. Through contact tracing, Public Health has discovered that these positives are connected to two specific events.

“The recent surge has reinforced data suggesting that we are not out of this pandemic,” said Public Health Director Grace Franklin. “While a significant portion of our population is vaccinated, COVID remains ever present. Therefore, any symptoms, which sometimes feel like a common cold, should be addressed with the highest level of attention. Our advice when a person feels sick is stay home from work, school, grocery shopping and social engagements until they receive a negative COVID test result.”

The Centers for Disease Control advise that all people with symptoms of COVID-19 get tested for current infection. People with COVID-19 have reported a wide range of symptoms ranging from mild to severe. These symptoms, which can resemble the flu or a common cold, include:

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea

Testing for COVID has proven to be a useful tool in curbing the spread of COVID-19 as contact tracing efforts can minimize spread through quarantining and exposure mitigation. Public Health encourages all who experience symptoms of COVID-19, no matter vaccination status, to stay home and get tested to avoid further spread of COVID throughout the community.

San Miguel County Public Health is continuing free testing on Wednesdays and Fridays in Telluride and Mountain Village. For the most up-to-date schedule, please visit bit.ly/smccovidtest. Additionally, the Uncompahgre Medical Center is offering free testing Monday through Friday through appointments made by phone.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is supplying free Binax At-Home rapid COVID tests to students and school staff, individuals reporting to in-person work and those interacting with the public. For more information, visit the CDPHE website: https://covid19.colorado.gov/covid-19-testing-at-home.

“Those who have not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine remain at increased risk for contracting the virus,” said Public Health Director Grace Franklin. “This surge occurred amongst children and older adults for the most part. For those families with mixed levels of protection, continue to practice masking and distancing with younger, more vulnerable or unvaccinated family members and continue to practice consistent pods throughout the summer to limit their risk of exposure.”

Public Health has confirmed 10 new positive cases of COVID-19 from test results received from May 27 through June 3. Of these cases, eight are confirmed as residents and all actively contagious cases are currently in isolation.

• 79-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, social
• 75-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, household
• 69-year-old female, nonresident, symptomatic, travel
• 53-year-old male, resident, symptomatic, household
• 51-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, social
• 51-year-old male, resident, symptomatic, household
• 50-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, community
• 46-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, household
• 28-year-old female, nonresident, symptomatic, social
• 27-year-old female, resident, symptomatic, workplace

As of release time today, there have been 892 total COVID cases among residents to date with 9 active cases.

To learn more about the county’s current COVID-19 metrics, please visit the County COVID-19 dashboard.

Power The Comeback:

• Crowded places, covered faces
• Get vaccinated
• Stay home when sick and get tested