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First case of COVID-19 confirmed in Laclede County

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The Laclede County Health Department has been notified of the first positive laboratory confirmed case of COVID-19 in the county. The case is travel-related and due to close contact with a positive individual from outside Laclede County, according to a press release from the Health Department. Health Department Administrator Charla Baker said they received word of the positive test at 10:45 a.m. this morning. She said an investigation has started and more information will be released as it becomes available. “Our agency will not be releasing personal information to protect the individual’s identity,” according to the release. “We are working with this individual to ensure they are following Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services (MoHSS) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines for quarantine. The Laclede County Health Department is working with the MoDHSS to identify any individual that may have been in close contact with the positive case. “This is being done to monitor close contacts for symptoms and assist in the containment of the virus spread in our community,” according to the release. The Health Department office is closed today (Friday) for Truman’s Birthday, but staff is at work looking into the case, Baker said. “We are closed for normal services, but we are here working on this so before we leave the agency today if there is additional information about risk exposure to the community, we’ll be putting that out,” she said. The Health Department reminds people continue frequent and proper hand washing, cleaning frequently used surfaces, staying at home when sick avoiding contact with people who are sick, cough and sneeze into tissues, wear a mask in public, not gathering in large groups and maintaining a 6 foot distance between yourself and. another person. Baker said the case demonstrates that the area is not finished with COVID-19 yet. “This is our first laboratory-confirmed case in Laclede County,” she said. “While we may have been weeks into it and been very fortunate, this is a good example that this is still an issue, still a concern and so those things you were doing the very first day you learned about it to protect yourself, you need to continue to do those now.” The Health Department encouraged anyone who suspects they have COVID-19 or have been in close contact with a potential case to contact a healthcare provider by phone for further directions.