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The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services alerted the Oakland County Health Division on December 16, 2021, of the first case of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus in Oakland County. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Omicron variant will likely spread more easily, but how easily it spreads compared to the Delta variant remains unknown. The CDC expects that anyone with an Omicron infection can spread the virus to others, even if they are vaccinated or don’t have symptoms.
Current vaccines are expected to protect against severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths due to infection with the Omicron variant, however breakthrough infections in people who are fully vaccinated are likely to occur. The following prevention strategies will reduce transmission of the COVID-19 virus and help limit variants:
- Get anyone age 5 and older vaccinated and a booster shot when eligible
- Wear a mask in public indoor settings
- Physically distance from others
- Stay home whenever symptoms appear
- Get tested for COVID-19, especially before gatherings
- Self-isolate properly if you develop symptoms or test positive for COVID-19
- Wash your hands frequently
- Cover your mouth and nose with a bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze
- Follow CDC recommendations and requirements for traveling
In general, COVID-19 cases continue to be prevalent in Oakland County and Michigan. Most new cases in Michigan continue to be among individuals who are not fully vaccinated. They comprised 85.1 percent of cases, 88.1 percent of hospitalizations, and 85.8 percent of deaths from January 15-December 4, 2021.
Visit www.OaklandCountyVaccine.com for information about upcoming COVID vaccination sites and who is eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. Appointments are strongly recommended and can be made online or by contacting Nurse on Call at 800-848-5533 during business hours. More information about COVID-19 can be found on the Health Division's website at www.oakgov.com/health or by contacting Nurse on Call at 800-848-5533 or noc@oakgov.com.
The Oakland County Apportionment Commission, which is made up of the full Oakland County Board of Commissioners, recently adopted with bipartisan support, a new plan that sets the boundaries and seats for county commission districts. The new map will be in place for the 2023-2024 Board term.
The Oakland County Board of Commissioners Reapportionment Ad Hoc Committee was formed on June 17, 2021, to determine county commission districts based on final 2020 Census data. It was chaired by Commissioner Angela Powell (D-Pontiac). In addition, Board Chair David T. Woodward (D-Royal Oak) served as vice chair, and Commissioners Marcia Gershenson (D-Bloomfield Twp.), Michael Spisz (R-Oxford) and Eileen Kowall (R-White Lake) were also members of the committee.
Woodward authored the new plan, which reduces the number of county districts from 21 to 19. According to state law, the full Board of Commissioners is responsible for establishing county districts, which are redrawn every ten years based on Census data. The new county commission district map can be found at https://bit.ly/OCMap2332.
Under state law, new county district boundaries may be challenged in court within 30 days of adoption. No challenge was filed against the new 2023-2032 Oakland County Commission district map.
A record 125 Oakland County employers will share $3.4 million in Going PRO Talent Fund grants awarded by the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity in December. The grants will allow the employers to hire and train 1,342 new employees, expand the skills of 1,281 existing workers and create 77 new registered apprenticeships during fiscal year 2022. Oakland County employers have received $10.9 million from the Going PRO Talent Fund since the program’s launch in 2014, helping 476 county employers of all sizes.
A list of the Oakland County employers receiving Going PRO Talent Fund grants can be found at https://bit.ly/3sY7Orh.
Oakland County Michigan Works!, which helped employers with grant applications, operates service centers in Novi, Oak Park, Pontiac, Southfield, Troy, and Waterford. Services offered include career coaching, interviewing and job search workshops, placement assistance, training courses and job trend information. The service centers also assist more than 3,000 employers seeking help with talent recruitment, apprenticeship programs, job fairs, candidate pre-screening, hiring, and training support, layoff support and labor market data.
To schedule a meeting, call 248-858-5520 and select the office nearest to you.
The Oakland County Retirement and Deferred Compensation Board, commonly referred to as the Retirement Board, is accepting applications for one citizen to serve as trustee. Interested individuals will be applying for a four-year term beginning January 2022, and the deadline to apply is 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 13, 2022.
Submitted applications will be reviewed by the Retirement Board, which will recommend a candidate to the Oakland County Board of Commissioners. Eligible candidates must be citizens and electors in Oakland County who are not eligible for membership or benefits under the retirement system, and they must not hold any other office or appointment with the county. The member selected to serve on the Retirement Board will attend monthly committee meetings during regular business hours. Members are responsible for administering the retirement plan adopted by the county to pay pension and retirement benefits to eligible retirees/participants.
To apply, please go to https://forms.oakgov.com/192, and complete and submit the form. The application can also be found by visiting www.oakgov.com/hr/retirement/Pages/Retirement-Board.aspx and clicking on the “Citizen Member Application” link. For more information, please contact Carly Webster, Retirement Administrator, at 248-520-9727 or websterc@oakgov.com.
The Oakland County Healthy Aging Ad Hoc Committee is continuing its support for the county’s older residents with approval of the Blueprint for Successful Aging.
The blueprint, which was approved by the committee on November 30, 2021, provides strategies to make systematic change and positive measurable outcomes addressing service gaps, unmet needs and opportunities for older adults to ensure they maintain a high quality of life regardless of age. The 36-page document, developed by the Area Agency on Aging 1-B (AAA 1-B), is the result of comprehensive community outreach, including four town hall meetings and multiple surveys.
To help close the gaps in existing services, the blueprint provides ten top recommendations for the county to implement, based on suggestions from community members and industry experts. Those suggestions focus on household repair and household chore programs; public transportation options; elder abuse prevention; assisting seniors with programs that provide in-home services; senior center programming and support; reducing isolation with technology; increasing volunteerism among seniors; and additional county programming geared towards seniors.
Physical and electronic versions of the blueprint will be provided to local stakeholders including governmental leadership, senior centers and libraries. The Board will focus on providing meaningful solutions to the challenges identified in the blueprint in the coming year.
The Oakland County Board of Commissioners website, Facebook page, YouTube channel and commissioner newsletters are great ways for residents to stay engaged with the Board.
Those who follow the Board @oakgov.boc on Facebook will see photos from events and information from around the county.
Subscribing to the Board’s YouTube channel allows followers to receive notifications when Board meetings are live and easily find recent videos. The channel can be found by searching for the “Oakland County Board of Commissioners” or going to bit.ly/YouTubeBOC.
By visiting www.oakgov.com/boc, constituents can watch Board and committee meetings, find their commissioner, and access the latest news, meeting calendars, information about each commissioner and more. Constituents can also sign up for their commissioner’s newsletter by clicking “Sign Up for my Newsletter” on the commissioner’s county website.
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