Tuolumne County Health Department Shares Coronavirus Status
Sonora, CA — Tuolumne County Public Health officials say they have no known COVID-19 cases yet to report.
Speaking with Clarke Broadcasting about the notification process, spokesperson Michelle Jachetta notes, “Health care providers need to coordinate with Public Health to initiate testing for COVID-19. It is a reportable disease like some other infectious diseases, so, if a test goes out and the results come back positive we would be notified.”
Asked about community rumors of locals who may have been exposed while traveling, Jachetta acknowledges that while there were a handful of Tuolumne County residents on the Feb. 21st Grand Princess cruise ship that docked off the San Francisco coast from which there was one COVID-19-related fatality. But as they did not have the virus, and remained non-symptomatic, officials determined a public information release was not necessary. The travelers additionally self-isolated out of an abundance of caution and cleared the 14-day period.
As for the cruise ship now docked outside of Oakland that California passengers are being transferred from to Travis Air Force Base for the purposes of undergoing a quarantine, she confides, “We do not know if there is anybody from Tuolumne County on that ship at this point because they are not returning travelers to Tuolumne County. They are going to do their quarantine – their monitoring period – on base.”
Moving forward, Jachetta says while at this time it is not known for how long COVID-19 will be a concern, local health officials are deeply involved in related activities and folks need to do their part to prevent spreading their germs.
“It is always a good idea to take standard precautions and practice every-day-preventative-actions, which are to wash your hands frequently for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth, practice social distancing – put about six feet between you and the next person and avoid people who are sick.”
She adds, “Clean frequently touched surfaces like countertops, doorknobs, phones, and handles…and just stay informed…because the situation is changing almost on a daily basis.”
Her office shares the following links. The first is for folks who may be at higher risk for serious illness from COVID-19 and steps that they can take to prepare. The other is to helpful resources for various groups such as event planners and businesses.
