Weekly Update: January 10, 2022
DHS Recommends COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Dose for Everyone Ages 12 and Older
DHS supports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendation that 12- to 15-year-olds should receive a single booster dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. DHS also supports CDC’s recommendations to shorten the booster interval from 6 months to 5 months for people who received the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines and that moderately or severely immunocompromised 5- to 11-year-olds receive an additional primary dose of vaccine 28 days after their second shot.
With the record high-level of disease transmission in Wisconsin, DHS strongly recommends that everyone who is eligible to get a booster should get one as soon as possible. The booster dose can strengthen and extend their protection against infection, serious illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.
To find a COVID-19 vaccine provider in your community, visit Vaccines.gov, or call 211 or 877-947-2211. For additional information about booster doses, additional doses, and help accessing your COVID-19 vaccine record to determine when you may be recommended for a booster, visit the DHS Additional Doses and Booster Doses webpage.
Letter to Schools: Keeping Students and Staff Safe
 DHS and the Evers Administration sent a letter to all public, private, and independent charter schools detailing the tools that DHS and the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) have made available to schools to help keep people safe and in school. Schools have multiple mitigation strategies available to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
We urge parents to support these approaches to keeping their children safe:
- Enrollment in the DHS School-Based Testing Program: We have secured funding to provide in-school testing through appropriate vendors as a way to help schools protect everyone in their buildings.
- Host a school-based vaccination and booster clinics during drop-off and pick-up times: All children ages 5 years and older are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, and all children ages 12 and older are now eligible to receive a booster. COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective, and provide the best protection from getting seriously sick, being hospitalized, or dying from COVID-19.
- Require masks in schools: Well-fitting, multi-layered masks have been shown to restrict respiratory droplet spread, helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
- DHS supports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) updated isolation and quarantine strategies: Students, teachers, and staff should get tested and isolate at home when they are sick, or quarantine and get tested if they have been in close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19. They should also wear a mask following their isolation and quarantine period. When isolation and quarantine measures are not implemented, COVID-19 can spread throughout a school and cause illness that could lead to hospitalization and death.
To learn more what parents and guardians can do to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant and keep children safe in schools, see the recent DHS news release or visit the COVID-19: Healthy Kids page.
Reminder: COVID-19 Testing Options
DHS reminds Wisconsinites to put their health first this new year. If you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, please get tested, stay home, and take care of yourself. If you need to be around others, wear a well-fitting mask. If you are exposed to COVID-19, wait 5-7 days before getting tested.
Demand for COVID-19 testing is high, but there are still many ways to get tested in Wisconsin. Trusted testing partners include local health departments, community testing sites, pharmacies, and health care providers. We encourage you to contact your doctor or primary health care provider to see if they offer testing.
We encourage you to plan ahead as much as possible and please be patient with staff at these sites. Rapid over-the-counter at-home test are available for purchase at many pharmacies and online. Wisconsinites can also request at-home collection kits, a type of at-home test, to be delivered to their home at no cost. The results of these tests are usually available in several days. See a list of products approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. If you need help finding a test, contact your local or tribal health department or call 211.
DHS also recommends that everyone continue to complete the appropriate quarantine or isolation guidance after being exposed to, or diagnosed with COVID-19. Due to the large numbers of cases, not everyone who has COVID-19 or is exposed will get a call from public health. Individuals can assist public health efforts by informing their close contacts who were exposed to COVID-19.
New Tools to Prevent and Fight COVID-19
 Last week Wisconsin received its first allocation of oral antiviral COVID-19 treatments molnupiravir and Paxlovid to treat patients diagnosed with mild to moderate COVID-19. Both antiviral pills are intended for people who are at risk of developing severe COVID-19.
Wisconsin also recently received an allocation of Evusheld, a new monoclonal antibody treatment used for prevention of COVID-19. Evusheld is intended for use in people ages 12 and up with weakened immune systems or those unable to get a COVID-19 vaccine for medical reasons.
Supplies of these treatments and oral antivirals is currently very limited.
These new COVID-19 treatments and oral antivirals can reduce complications from COVID-19. It is critical that we all continue to take steps to stop the spread of COVID-19 to avoid needing treatment. To learn more, talk to your health care provider or visit the DHS COVID-19: Treatments and Medications page.
COVID-19 treatments and medications should not be used as replacements for prevention measures such as wearing a mask and vaccination. For the best protection against COVID-19 and circulating variants, get vaccinated and get your booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Update: Support for Wisconsin’s Health Care System
DHS recently provided an update on Wisconsin’s efforts to help health and residential care providers provide critical care to Wisconsinites during this COVID-19 surge. In collaboration with our state’s hospitals and long-term care providers, since October 19, 2021, DHS has worked with staffing agencies to recruit 567 nurses, nursing assistants, and other types of health care workers to support 72 health and residential care facilities like hospitals, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities across the state. This support is partially funded by resources provided to Wisconsin under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
Health and residential care providers like hospitals, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities that need additional staffing support are encouraged to participate in the DHS Agency Staffing Resource Assistant Service. Information about the types of facilities that are eligible to make staffing requests, along with how to participate in the program, is available on the DHS COVID-19 Staffing Resources page.
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