The Latest: 4 Dane County prisoners test negative for virus
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Latest on the coronavirus outbreak in Wisconsin (all times local):
3:30 p.m.
Tests of four Dane County Jail inmates in Madison for the coronavirus have come back negative, after two other inmates were shown to have COVID-19.
The sheriff's department reported Friday that four of those who had been in isolation after having fevers do not have the virus. Two other inmates with fevers also remain in isolation but have not been tested, said sheriff's department spokeswoman Elise Schaffer.
Nine more inmates who had contact with some of the eight have been removed from the general population as a precaution but none of them had symptoms.
There are four confirmed cases among workers at prisons in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections state system. The state halted new prison admissions on Monday, sending inmates to county jails instead.
Statewide, 15 people have died from the virus and more than 840 have tested positive, but health officials say the number of people with the virus is likely much higher because so few tests have been administered.
___
2 p.m.
Wisconsin's top health leader is urging patience, saying Friday it will take “several weeks” before the impact on a stay-at-home order is seen in the number of cases of the coronavirus.
The state Department of Health Services reported Friday that there were 842 cases in the state, up from 707 the day before. The state said there have been 13 deaths, but local health departments have confirmed 15.
Milwaukee County had the most deaths at eight, followed by Ozaukee County with three and one each in Dane, Fond du Lac, Iron and Sauk counties.
Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary Andrea Palm said without implementing the stay-at-home order, DHS models show 22,000 people could be sick with the virus by April 8.
“Please don’t get discouraged," Palm said. "We need to remain to be vigilant.”
___
1:20 p.m.
Gov. Tony Evers on Friday ordered the temporary suspension of all evictions and foreclosures due to the COVID-19 pandemic to help people suffering from a loss of income during this time.
The order prohibits landlords from evicting tenants for any reason, with some caveats. Evictions can proceed if not doing so will put a person in immediate threat of physical harm.
Evers also barred mortgage lenders from proceeding with a civil action to foreclose on real estate for 60 days.
Evers said the order in no way relieves a person from the obligation to pay their rent or mortgage.
Evers called evictims and foreclosures a “direct and serious threat to the health and well-being of Wisconsinites.”
___
10:45 a.m.
Health officials say two more people at a senior care facility in Ozaukee County have died after testing positive for the coronavirus.
The two were residents of Village Pointe Commons in Grafton where a 91-year-old man died a week ago after contracting COVID-19.
The Washington Ozaukee Public Health Department did not provide any additional information about the two deaths at Village Pointe, where members of the National Guard are helping with staffing.
Statewide, 14 people have died from the virus and more than 700 have tested positive.
___
8:55 a.m.
Two inmates in the Dane County Jail in Madison have tested positive for COVID-19 and results are pending on another six inmates who are in isolation.
The Dane County Sheriff's Office said Thursday night that all of the inmates were tested after they had fevers. The sheriff's office said nine more inmates who had contact with some of the eight have been removed from the general population as a precaution but none of them had symptoms.
There are four confirmed cases among workers at prisons in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections state system. The state halted new prison admissions on Monday, sending inmates to county jails instead.
Statewide, 12 people have died from the virus and more than 700 have tested positive.
6 a.m.
The number of deaths due to the coronavirus outbreak continues to climb in Wisconsin.
Four deaths were reported Thursday, including three in Milwaukee County, bringing the state's total to 12.
The medical examiner's office says one was a 79-year-old Milwaukee woman who had been hospitalized since March 16.
Another Milwaukee woman, age 65, hospitalized since March 21 died Thursday afternoon. A 69-year-old man died Thursday night.
The Journal Sentine l reports the fourth death is in Iron County, the first case for the northern Wisconsin county.
The number of confirmed cases continues to climb steadily to more than 700 Thursday.