Wisconsin health officials push vaccines for eligible K-12 students as COVID-19 cases rise

The number of new COVID-19 cases is starting to rise again in Wisconsin, raising concern among public health officials as the start of the school year approaches.

The State Department of Health Services reported 342 new cases of the disease Thursday, bringing the average for the past seven days to 242 cases daily. That’s nearly three times the average of two weeks ago, according to DHS assistant secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk.

During a press briefing on Thursday, Willems Van dike said getting eligible children vaccinated now is a priority so they can complete their rounds of vaccines and be fully protected by the start of the school year.

“Not only does the vaccine protect our students and make in-person activities safer, it can also make life easier for parents and guardians, as vaccinated children are not quarantined after close contact,” Willems Van dike mentionned.

Like the previous school year, Willems Van dike said it will be up to local school boards and superintendents to decide on mask requirements for their districts. But she said the question of whether students or staff should wear a mask was not as simple as determining their immunization status.

She pointed out that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that elementary schools require masks for everyone because most students are too young to receive the vaccine.

“Likewise, the CDC is also very clear that when disease rates are very high, everyone should wear a mask and get vaccinated so that disease rates go down,” Willems Van dike mentionned.

Thursday, the Madison Metropolitan School District announcement all students and staff will be required to wear masks inside school buildings and when traveling by bus in the fall.

In a letter to the district, Superintendent Carlton Jenkins said “Now is not the time for complacency. “

“The CDC, AAP, and local health experts continue to recommend masks as an effective tool for schools to keep COVID-19 settings low; allow us to be physically together; and provide opportunities for safe, engaging and equitable student learning experiences, ”he wrote.

As of Thursday, 2,848,546 the people of Wisconsin, or 48.9 percent of the population, were fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

This includes nearly 28% of the state’s 12 to 15 year olds and 38% of the 16 and 17 year olds.

Just over 40 percent of Wisconsin residents between the ages of 18 and 24 are fully immunized.

Dr Ryan Westergaard, chief medical officer of the Office of Communicable Diseases at DHS, said more college and university students in this age range need to be vaccinated in order to avoid increased transmission when they return to campus.

He pointed out that the onset of the state’s fall push began the week after many campuses opened to students, indicating that some transmission between students was a contributing factor. increased cases in the community.

“We know this is how it works because we have the data. September 2020 said this is what happens when sensitive people come back from everywhere. We also know, based on the effectiveness of the vaccine, that it’s completely preventable. So let’s prevent that, “Westergaard said.

Willems Van dike said DHS is working with state universities to help make vaccines available on campus and communicate with students about their immunization status.

The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients has also increased with the number of daily cases. To Wednesday 143 people were in the hospital with COVID-19, according to the Wisconsin Hospital Association. A week ago, there were 97 hospital patients.

Westergaard said Southeast Wisconsin and Fox Valley are the two areas with the most worrying increase in hospitalizations.

“Cases are on the rise statewide, as they are nationwide. But when we talk about serious illness requiring hospitalizations, these are the two regions that seem to be leading the curve in terms of increased morbidity. “said Westergaard. .

Milwaukee saw huge crowds gather to watch the Milwaukee Bucks win the NBA Championship on Tuesday and the celebrations continued in the city on Thursday. Willems Van dike praised the Bucks but warned the lack of masks at large gatherings is of concern.

“This combination of probably unvaccinated people without masks in those nearby environments, the fact that people were really loud and screaming loudly, which is a great way to spread the infection, the presence of the Delta variant in our state – I expect we will see additional cases as a result “, Willems Van dike mentionned.

Willems Van dike said state officials see the Delta variant representing an increasing proportion of sequenced COVID-19 cases in the state and have warned that the variant will spread faster than previous versions of the virus, especially among unvaccinated individuals.