Photo: Patch

From Grace Grinager, Public Health Supervisor, Cook County Public Health and Human Services and Jim Boyd, Executive Director of the Cook County Chamber of Commerce - December 4, 2021

As we continue to see relatively high spread of COVID-19 in our community, Cook County Public Health and the Cook County Chamber of Commerce encourage area businesses to continue to support your employees and businesses in following the practices we know limit the spread of this virus:

Encourage your employees to vaccinate against COVID-19, including boosters for those who are eligible.  At this point, anyone ages five and up is eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine.  We recommend boosters for those 18+ who:

• Had the J&J vaccine over two months ago or
• Had the two-dose series of Moderna or Pfizer series over six months ago

You can sign up for vaccination at http://cookcountycovid19.org or by calling the public health office at 218-387-3605.

Make sure that employees are not coming to work while sick.  If an employee is feeling ill, please encourage them to seek a COVID-19 test as soon as possible.  The sooner a person with symptoms tests, the better able we are to slow the spread of COVID in the community.  You can schedule a test by calling Sawtooth Mountain Clinic at 218-387-2330 or Grand Portage Health Services at (218) 475-2234.  You can also pick-up a mail-in saliva test kit at the atrium screener at Sawtooth Mountain Clinic.
 
Encourage “layering” other strategies to further limit the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace such as:

• Consistent mask use in shared indoor space
• Improving ventilation indoors
• Social distancing among employees
• Frequent hand washing
• Covering your cough

If local businesses would like assistance in re-visiting your preparedness plan, or talking through areas of your operations where you’d like to improve infection control, please contact Andrea Orest ([email protected]).

Thank you so much for all you’ve done, and continue to do to help keep our community safe during the pandemic!  This has gone on far longer than any of us would have liked, but we really do appreciate all that our businesses have done throughout.  Keep up the good work!