LA CROSSE, Wis. — Patients in La Crosse County who have tested positive for Covid-19 may not get a call from their local health department due to the rising infection rate in the region. The county health department says it is facing "significant delays" in the ability to call new cases as more and more people contract the virus. On Monday, the county reported 872 new cases in the past seven days, a record increase. This increase impacts the ability for contact tracers to successfully call all positive cases and their close contacts in a timely manner.

“Our team is phenomenal and has worked tirelessly to slow the spread, but we are stretched past capacity right now,” says Jen Rombalski, the La Crosse County Health Director.

The health department says it will continue to prioritize contacting cases and contacts at the highest risk. The county has launched an online form where people can answer questions usually asked by a contact tracer. Those who test positive are encouraged to notify their close contacts. Those are defined as any person in contact with the positive case while they had symptoms and during the 48 hours before symptoms developed. 

“Letting contacts know they have been exposed is such an important piece of slowing down the spread of a disease,” says Jacquie Cutts, the La Crosse County Public Health Nursing Manager. “We have too many cases to do it alone, which is why we are asking for the community to help us accomplish this critical task.”

Patients who test positive should also their employer, school and/or childcare center, and stay home and apart from others in your household. You can anonymously tell your close contacts by visiting TellYourContacts.org to send a text or email to those who need to know.

To learn more about what to do if you have positive or have been exposed, click here.