NEWS RELEASE I October 8, 2021
Media Contact:
Alison Clark, Communications Specialist
aclark@miottawa.org | 616-494-5597
Ottawa County Department of Public Health Issues Public Health Reconciliation Order Clarifying Certain Provisions in August 6 and August 20 Orders
HOLLAND, MI. (October 8, 2021) – The Ottawa County Department of Public Health Administrative Health Officer today issued a public health reconciliation order clarifying certain provisions contained within previous Orders issued on August 6, 2021 and August 20, 2021.
The Reconciliation Order is issued pursuant to MCL §333.2451, MCL §333.2453, MCL §333.2433 and by MCL §333.2428(2), and provides for the following:
- Changes the “Outbreak” definition from the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists regarding educational settings from two to three cases, which may result in fewer children and school staff being required to quarantine.
- Changes the criterion for lifting the order from 7 days in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) community transmission category “low” to 14 days in the CDC transmission category “moderate”. The August 20, 2021 Order will remain in effect until 60 days past the date COVID-19 vaccine is authorized or approved by the FDA and available to persons in pre-kindergarten through grade six, or if community transmission for Ottawa County is categorized as “Moderate” by the (CDC) for at least fourteen consecutive days, or until further notice from the Administrative Health Officer. The previous Order states that Ottawa County be categorized as “Low” by the CDC for at least seven consecutive days. The CDC Community Transmission Level was “Moderate” during summer 2021, with relatively few pediatric COVID-19 cases reported each week; if “Moderate” transmission is reattained, select mitigation strategies in schools could be reduced.
“The Ottawa County Department of Public Health consistently reviews COVID-19 data, as well as guidance provided by the State of Michigan,” said Lisa Stefanovsky, Administrative Health Officer. “The clarifications provided here simply recognize a statewide change to the school outbreak definition, add updated data to further support the existing Orders, and provide modified criteria for rescinding the Ottawa County school mask order. The latter change provides an achievable, yet protective, threshold, and is the result of further analysis of COVID-19 case data in a surge dominated by Delta”.
Today’s Reconciliation Order supersedes the August 6, 2021 and August 20, 2021 Orders where inconsistent, and incorporates by reference all provisions of the August 6, 2021 and August 20, 2021 Orders that are not inconsistent. This Order does not rescind any provisions in the August 6 or August 20 Orders.
The Reconciliation Order can be found here.
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