Atlantic, IA — Cass County Public Health is busy planning and preparing for any potential outbreak of COVID-19 in the Cass County area. Beth Olsen, Cass County Public Health Director, said “While there are no known cases of COVID-19 in Cass County at this time, we are prepared for the likely event of some COVID cases appearing in the next few weeks.” She explained that while Public Health does not do any testing of patients, they are responsible for disease investigation should a resident test positive.

As of 7:30 am on April 2, CCHS had tested 43 people for COVID-19, with 38 of those tests coming back negative and 5 still pending results. Those numbers only reflect people who sought care and testing at CCHS, not those who may have been tested in other medical facilities. Regardless of where they are tested, if a Cass County resident tests positive for COVID-19, then Public Health will be notified by the Iowa Department of Public Health. If a resident tests positive, Public Health staff will follow the same process as with any community infectious disease exposure.

The Cass County Board of Health contracts with Cass County Health System to manage Public Health services for Cass County. This arrangement makes it very efficient for Olsen to coordinate with both the county emergency management services and CCHS. She said “We are fortunate to be in a situation where our county emergency management team and the health system work very closely together every day. That makes us well prepared to work together effectively and efficiently in times of crisis.”

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) — A former Missouri state patrol trooper who was driving a boat when an Iowa man fell out and drowned has received the last payment of a financial settlement he reached with the state. In February, Anthony Piercy accepted a $201,000 settlement of lawsuits he filed as he tried get his job back. He lost his law enforcement license after he pleaded guilty in 2017 to a misdemeanor boat violation in the 2014 death of 20-year-old Brandon Ellingson, of Clive, Iowa who drowned at the Lake of the Ozarks.

In return for the settlement, Piercy agreed to not be reinstated as an officer.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Pressure from medical experts and politicians on the federal and state level is building for a mandatory shelter-in-place order from Gov. Kim Reynolds who rejects such a move as unnecessary. The state is reporting 66 new cases for a total of 614 and two additional deaths, meaning 11 have died. Eli Percenevich, an epidemiologist physician overseeing infection prevention research at the University of Iowa, says the metrics Reynolds uses to decide her response isn’t staying ahead of the growth of infections and deaths. He joins Iowa Democratic legislative and congressional leaders in calling on Reynolds to issue a stay at home order.

Officials with the Atlantic Police Department said Thursday (Today), that  they have canceled their summer activities, including: the zoo trip; camp out; golf tournament, and Family Night Out. In one way or another, officials said, the backbone of those programs is donations and sponsorships from many great local businesses. With businesses doing whatever they can to stay afloat, and the uncertainty of when this pandemic will be over,” the unfortunate decision was made, to put those programs on hold for this summer.