Community News Stories

Northeast Iowa RC&D is administering a donor sponsored fund to help small businesses in Decorah impacted by COVID-19. The fund will provide up to $500 stipends to qualifying businesses based on need as funding allows. It is anticipated that need will outpace the fund, but we are hoping to help as many as possible. The link to apply can be found here:

https://northeastiowarcd.org/small-business-fund/

Orders will include a coupon for a carnation from Country Garden in Decorah.  Once orders are ready an email will be sent with instructions for curbside pick-up…however we would encourage the shipping option.  Thank you for supporting the Decorah area businesses and Stay Safe!

https://decorahstronglocal.itemorder.com/sale?fbclid=IwAR18q6OCqsuf3cMfOzUkTSb6Dp6jJU1FGF1ivxLJ9MK-9nEIhPlOYFLhafM

Northeast Iowa RC&D is administering a donor sponsored fund to help small businesses in Decorah impacted by COVID-19. The fund will provide up to $500 stipends to qualifying businesses based on need as funding allows. It is anticipated that need will outpace the fund, but we are hoping to help as many as possible. Click below for more information.

We would like to invite your churches to ring your bells  with us in an UNITED SOUND  of  compassion , hope , peace and celebration on EASTER SUNDAY  10 a.m. for five-SIX  minutes…and we also invite  all members of your congregations to  step outside their homes and join in the UNITED RING with us!

WE need to celebrate,  and we must pray and continue to do so in the next weeks.  LET’S MAKE A UNITED EFFORT..and if we are loud enough , we might catch the sound, and know we are together in faith and in the promise of the RESURRECTED CHRIST!  10 a.m. EASTER SUNDAY FOR FIVE -SIX MINUES!

PLEASE GET THE WORD TO ALL YOUR PEOPLE  AND IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD! AND RING THOSE CHURCH BELLS AS LOUDLY AS YOU CAN!  Be sure the kids have noise makers, pots and pans and whatever to join in!

COVID-19: Treatment at Home

By Dr. Michele Dikkers, Chair of Clayton County Board of Health

COVID-19 has perplexed all of us, creating many questions and concerns. Probably the most pertinent concern, for our community and your care staff, is what to do if you come down with COVID-19.

If you develop fever, cough/respiratory symptoms or shortness of breath, you may be infected. We know that 80% of the time, you will be able to manage your symptoms at home. If you have symptoms, follow these suggestions:

• Stay at home, do not leave your home except for medical care.
• Separate yourself from others in your home. Stay in a “sick room” if possible.
• Avoid sharing personal household items (like dishes, glasses, cups, eating utensils, towels, bedding, etc.).
• Get rest and stay hydrated. Drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious foods. Humidification may help the breathing. Even though you need to rest, remember to get some activity to help expand your lungs, walking in your room or the hallway may be all you can tolerate, but can help.
• Use acetaminophen (Tylenol) as needed.
• Clean high touch surfaces daily: counters, doorknobs, phones, remotes, key boards, etc.

Monitor your symptoms carefully. If your symptoms worsen, or you have concerns, contact your medical provider by calling their office. Your provider can assess whether you need to be seen in the office, or if you can recover at home. Also, there may be options for your provider to evaluate you via telehealth or telemedicine.

There are isolation recommendations for those with COVID-19, and those with fever or respiratory symptoms. You should stay at home and isolate from others in the house until:

1. You have had no fever for at least 72 hours (3 full days) without use of medicines that reduce fever

AND

2. Other symptoms have improved/resolved

AND

3. It has been at least 7 days since your symptoms first appeared.

Isolation is also recommended for those that live with someone who has symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive for COVID-19. They should stay at home for 14 days after the last exposure.

Remember, if you have questions, call your provider. Most are now able to evaluate patients via the phone and computer, this is referred to as Telehealth and Telemedicine.

We are in this together.

VMH Community & Home Care
40 1st Street SE
Waukon, IA 52172
(563) 568-5660

Allamakee County Specific COVID-19 Statistics
Through April 10, 2020

Total Cases to date 20
Cases Requiring Hospitalization 4
Deaths due to COVID 1
Recovered/ Off Isolation 15
Number of tests sent to State Hygienic Lab *** 63
Number of negative tests processed at SHL 43
Number of tests pending at SHL 3

***We are not able to track the number of negative tests done on Allamakee residents at reference labs such as Gundersen, Mayo, University of Iowa, etc… All positive tests done are reported to IDPH (Iowa Dept. of Public Health) who notifies Allamakee County Public Health to initiate follow up.

Recommendations for people with illness
DO NOT GO TO WORK OR LEAVE YOUR HOME IF YOU ARE ILL
Stay home and isolate from others in the house until:
• You have had no fever for at least 72 hours (that is 3 full days of no fever without the use of fever reducing medications)
• Other symptoms have improved (for example, when your cough or shortness of breath have improved)
• At least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared.

If you think you may need healthcare, call first. Your provider can assess whether you need to be seen in a healthcare facility or you should try to recover at home.

• Remember to cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or your elbow/upper arm
• Wash hands frequently with soap and water or hand sanitizer for at least 20 seconds
• Maintain 6 ft distance between each other

Remember the virus can’t move if you don’t !!
Let’s do what we can to keep Allamakee as safe as possible !!

Gundersen Eye Clinics close temporarily due to COVID-19

With patient health and safety in mind during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gundersen Health System will temporarily close some of its Eye Clinics effective Monday, April 13.

Temporary closures include Gundersen Eye Clinics in:

Wisconsin
Black River Falls
Friendship
Hillsboro
Onalaska
Prairie du Chien
Richland Center
Sparta
Whitehall

Iowa
Waukon

Essential Gundersen Eye Care (no routine appointments) is available at locations in La Crosse, Tomah, Winona, Decorah and Viroqua Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
If you need information from one of these locations or have questions, please call (608) 782-7300 or (toll free) (800) 362-9567.

The temporary closures may change as Gundersen monitors the COVID-19 pandemic.

News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 9, 2020

Contact: Nancy Sacquitne RN, BSN 563-382-4662 | nsacquitne@winneshiekhealth.org

Winneshiek County Public Health Advises Against Easter Travels

Easter and spring holidays are a traditional time of family gatherings, celebrations and observances. Like many other events and activities, Winneshiek County Public Health advises residents that these observances should be different this year.

“We know many families gather together over Easter and Passover,” said Winneshiek County Public Health Director Krista Vanden Brink, “But, like school, shopping and most other activities, we’re asking residents to modify their plans in light of COVID-19.”

Remain attentive to staying home if at all possible. Limit doing essential errands to one time per week and send only one (1) family member to do those errands.

Gatherings of family and friends, whether in Winneshiek County, or by travel to other states, is discouraged. When people come together, the chances of  spreading the COVID19 virus grow. Although people with symptoms of the virus (coughing, fever and shortness of breath) obviously should not be around other people, even those who are seemingly well should do the same. “We are learning that some people with coronavirus don’t have any symptoms, and that even those who later develop symptoms can pass the virus to others before showing symptoms. This is why even people who do not feel ill should stay home,” said Vanden Brink.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) is highly recommending wearing a mask in public – these can be homemade cloth masks. It is important to remember to maintain good hand washing whenever at home or out doing errands to keep your hands clean.

Families and friends are encouraged to find alternate ways to observe holidays and to stay connected. Try Skype, Zoom, FaceTime or other electronic means of connecting, and phone calls and letters are especially welcome during this time of social distancing.

As of today, April 9, 2020 there are 5 cases of COVID-19 in Winneshiek County.

Winneshiek County Public Health continues to work closely with the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), and other state and local partners to respond to this ongoing pandemic. Currently, three cases have completed isolation and are able to return to work or be out in the community. Follow-up is done with the positive cases by Winneshiek County Public Health.

For up-to-date information on COVID-19, visit the IDPH webpage at https://idph.iowa.gov/Emerging-Health-Issues/Novel-Coronavirus and follow the
department on Facebook at @IowaDepartmentOfPublicHealth and on Twitter at @IAPublicHealth.
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News release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: Morgan Hawk (319) 786-4040 | morganhawk@alliantenergy.com

Alliant Energy gives $1 million to Hometown Care Energy Fund Donation helps income-eligible customers in Iowa with energy costs

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – April 9, 2020 – Alliant Energy (NASDAQ: LNT) is making a $1 million donation to its Hometown Care Energy Fund in Iowa. The fund assists customers that need financial help to pay their bill.

Alliant Energy knows that many customers may face financial hardship due to the coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic. This contribution shows Alliant Energy’s ongoing commitment to serve customers in Iowa and help those in need.

The Hometown Care Energy Fund is supported annually with funds from Alliant Energy shareowners, as well as voluntary contributions from employees, retirees and customers.

“We know that many customers need help paying their bill or may need additional help due to the pandemic,” said Linda Mattes, Vice President of Customer and IT Operations at Alliant Energy. “We are coming together with customers, employees, retirees and shareowners to help our neighbors.”

Alliant Energy partners with nonprofit organizations in Iowa to distribute the funds. Customers can review income eligibility requirements and apply for funding by contacting the Community Action Agency.

If you or someone you know is having difficulty paying a bill, visit the new Alliant Energy My Account site to set up a payment plan based on ability to pay. On My Account, customers can also set up fee-free credit card payments, review account information and report outages.

The contributions by Alliant Energy’s shareowners are not included in the rates charged to customers.

More information on the Hometown Care Energy Fund can be found at alliantenergy.com/hometown care.

For tips to reduce energy use and save money, Alliant Energy shares 10 tips.

Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ: LNT) provides regulated energy service to 970,000 electric and 420,000 natural gas custom ers across Iowa and Wisconsin. Alliant Energy’s mission is to deliver the energy solutions and exceptional service customers and communities count on – safely, efficiently and responsibly. Interstate Power and Light Company and Wisconsin Power and Light Company are Alliant Energy’s two public energy companies. Alliant Energy is a component of the Nasdaq CRD Sustainability Index, Bloomberg’s 2020 Gender-Equality Index, and the S&P 500. For more information, visit  alliantenergy.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagramand Twitter.

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ANR010-20

Preventing Outbreaks
Businesses should implement measures to enable social distancing as much as possible.

• Consider staggering shifts to reduce worker population at any given time.
• Stagger breaks to reduce staff interactions.
• Review procedures to identify ways to increase the physical separation of staff.
• Businesses should prioritize hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette among employees.
• Businesses should provide or allow employees to wear their own homemade cloth facemasks.
• Businesses should provide hand sanitizer or handwashing opportunities as frequently as possible.

Detecting Outbreaks
Screen all employees by taking their temperature and assessing for cough, sore throat, difficulty breathing or any other respiratory symptom at the beginning and end of each shift. For a screening algorithm click here.

Exclude all employees reporting fever or respiratory symptoms (these cases will be directed to stay home and isolate themselves from other people and animals in the home) until they:

• Have had no fever for at least 72 hours (that is three full days of no fever without the use of medicine that reduces fevers) AND
•  Other symptoms have improved (for example, when your cough or shortness of breath have improved) AND
• At least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared.

Exclusion criteria must be followed with all symptomatic employees, regardless of whether the testing is completed (even if the employee tests negative for COVID-19 infection).

Please report to the Iowa Department of Public Health when 10% or greater of your employees are reporting COVID-19 symptoms (including fever, cough, sore throat, difficulty breathing, or any other respiratory symptom). Report to public health by filling out the survey at this link: https://redcap.idph.state.ia.us/surveys/?s=NRJ4FDMDPN

Managing Outbreaks
Coordinate with your occupational health provider to define a pathway to test symptomatic employees.

• Public health will approve State Hygienic Laboratory testing for symptomatic employees during outbreaks.
• The occupational health provider or employees’ personal health providers will be responsible for collecting the nasopharyngeal swab for testing and following-up for medical care as needed.

When employees test positive for COVID-19 infection, public health and occupational health will work jointly to investigate cases and identify the following contacts:

• household contacts,
• rideshare partners, and
• co-workers with prolonged contact (within 6 feet of the case for at least 30 minutes).

All of these contacts will be directed to stay at home and isolate themselves from other people and animals in the home for 14 days after the last known exposure to a person with COVID-19

Businesses should consider excluding high-risk employees when outbreaks are ongoing. High-risk employees would include:

• People aged 65 years and older
• People of all ages with underlying medical conditions, particularly if not well controlled, including:
  • People with chronic lung disease or moderate to severe asthma
  • People who have serious heart conditions
  • People who are immunocompromised
• Many conditions can cause a person to be immunocompromised, including cancer treatment, smoking, bone marrow or organ transplantation, immune deficiencies, poorly controlled HIV or AIDS, and prolonged use of corticosteroids and other immune weakening medications
  • People with severe obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥40)
  • People with diabetes
  • People with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis
  • People with liver disease

Business decisions to close, should be based upon workforce availability and the ability to follow the recommended measures outlined above.

* Outbreaks are defined as greater than 10% of employees ill with COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, difficulty breathing, or other respiratory symptoms)

To conserve our masks for use by our health care workers, we are asking that anyone entering Winneshiek Medical Center for an appointment, urgent or emergency care, or otherwise, wear their own mask, scarf or face covering. If you do not have anything that can cover your mouth and nose, we do have some masks at each screening area (Main Entrance and Emergency) for use. Thank you for your understanding.