PIKE COUNTY, Mo. — A recent press release from the Pike County Health Department.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic the Pike County Health Department has continued to implement mitigation strategies to help keep our communities safe and informed. Since 2020, our agency staff has worked hard to keep up with the ever-changing data, information and education in order to ensure we are giving the most up-to-date recommendations per CDC guidelines and apply them to our current county level situation. We continue to address many other public health issues with education and prevention strategies. We believe these last two years have prepared us to be even better at responding to any future COVID-19 surge and other public health emergencies. We continue to promote and protect the health, safety, and well-being of all through the many services we have to offer. Our community has grown stronger together through these hard times and it makes us proud to continue serving such amazing individuals.
In the recent months we have slowly been making changes to our online reporting; you will see that we are currently updating positive case counts twice weekly. We have also added direct links that will take citizens directly to the CDC and MODHSS (Missouri Department Health & Senior Services) online COVID-19 dashboards for more data and statistics per county, state, and national levels.
Although we are no longer making contact with positive COVID-19 cases or contact tracing to the extent we were in the beginning of the pandemic, we continue to monitor these cases as we do with other communicable diseases; investigating outbreaks and offering recommendations to individuals and businesses on how to manage and/or mitigate the illness for their specific situation. We are seeing that our COVID-19 case managing duties are becoming increasingly similar to how we have always managed other communicable diseases, which we believe is a positive movement.
BEGINNING APRIL 1st, 2022 we will be offering COVID-19 vaccines daily with no appointment necessary for those ages 12 and up. Pediatric COVID-19 vaccines (ages 5-11) will still be required to make an appointment. Those interested can receive their vaccines at our office from 8am-12p and from 1-4pm. Walk-ins will be on a first come, first serve basis and are subject to availability just as any other vaccine we have to offer.
CDC now states that those who have had their primary doses (two dose series of Pfizer or Moderna OR a single dose of Johnson & Johnson) are considered fully vaccinated, and those who have received their primary doses along with their boosters are considered up to date on their COVID-19 vaccinations.
COVID-19 and its variants are still a large concern for many people. Those who are severely immunocompromised or unvaccinated are still at highest risk of contracting and spreading this virus. We continue to encourage everyone to keep themselves and their families safe by practicing good hygiene, staying home when sick and wearing a mask when in large public spaces. Staying up to date on the currently recommended vaccines is a largely effective way to fight against these viruses. Pike County Health Department is available and willing to answer any questions or concerns you may have regarding COVID-19 or any other agency matter. Reach us by calling 573-324-2111, by visiting our website at www.pikecountyhealth.org or follow us on social media.