DANE COUNTY — The executive of Dane County claimed that taking the county's COVID-19 order and implementing it across Wisconsin would "dramatically reduce" the spread of the virus.
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi argued in a letter to Republican legislative leaders Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Senate Majority Leader Elect Devin LeMahieu on Tuesday that the Dane County health order is the "strictest in the state" and has led to some local successes, as cases surge in counties across Wisconsin.
While Parisi acknowledges that ICU's are full and hospital staffs are stretched in Dane County, the health order has helped slow the surging virus compared to in other counties.
The executive writes that the county's order is largely responsible for its lower rate of infection per capita compared to the rest of Wisconsin. Dane County's is about 60 out of every 100,000. Wisconsin's is approaching 100, Parisi says.
According to Parisi, contact tracing in the county has proved that four percent of the county's cases are coming from bars and restaurants. Parisi thus argued to the Republican lawmakers that one of the ways to halt the virus is by issuing a temporary, 30-day order across the state requiring bars and restaurants to serve customers via carry-out with "limited" indoor capacity.
"The lack of a comprehensive statewide plan to mitigate the spread of the virus is contributing greatly to our challenge. This virus knows no boundaries; it is spreading at alarming rates. We’re doing everything we can to slow this virus but we need your help, too," Parisi wrote to the lawmakers.
The City of Milwaukee is currently abiding by its own COVID-19 order, which Mayor Tom Barrett says has led to local successes there, though local health officials have admitted residents need to stick to COVID-19 health guidelines as the state's COVID-19 levels refuse to decrease.