Pottawatomie County Commissioners have decided not to extend Public Health Order Number Six, and to phase out the County's restrictions and limitations.
They recommend citizens follow the governor's Ad Astra guidelines for re-opening, as well as industry rules and CDC/KDHE recommendations. Limit the number of people if you cannot maintain social distancing, sanitize and wear a mask.
The decision to phase out came after the Health Officer and the medical officer agreed that Public Health Order number six should be extended another 10 - 14 days. The Health Officer indicated the county has at least one cluster and possibly more. There was discussion about the number of positive cases in the county and the continued increase. Their hope was to see a slower increase in the number of positives, or a plateauing.
Commissioners noted that the county still has no hospitalizations and deaths, indicating the steps taken have worked to keep the hospitals from being overwhelmed. There was support for publishing guidelines, a strong recommendation that people take precautions and to provide them with self-responsibility rather than government mandates.
There was commission support for front page information on COVID-19 and the steps people can take to mitigate the spread of the virus. They plan to reach out to media about creating a "Covid Corner" for weekly updates and recommendations.