Last week, the state and Summit County health departments confirmed the first case of COVID-19 in Summit County – a resident who likely contracted the disease during his travels. But the situation escalated when the state’s first case of community spread was reported Saturday in Summit County.
The public health order issued Sunday by Summit County Health Director Rich Bullough and Summit County Attorney Margaret Olson requires businesses where large groups of people gather, such as restaurants, bars, theaters and gyms, to close, with some exceptions. The move has put many business owners and employees in a difficult position, but Summit County Councilmember Kim Carson says it was a necessary decision.
“We just felt like we didn’t have any other choice but to do this,” Carson said.
The peak winter season is ending early with the closure of the resorts, but Carson says thousands of visitors are still in town, and if the outbreak rapidly spreads through the community, local health care facilities won’t have the capacity to care for everyone. That’s why Carson says the public needs to think beyond how the virus will inconvenience them and consider the health and safety of others.
“Everybody has a responsibility, and I’ve been incredibly disappointed with the number of people that haven’t taken this seriously.”
Still, the closure of businesses impacted by the public health order results in a loss of income for employees and business owners who need to pay rent and cover other living expenses. Carson says the county is looking at options for lessening the impact.
“We’re working on trying to identify what some of the resources are that might be available, how the process would work and who would be involved, what other entities would be involved in that process,” Carson said.
The county will revisit its public health order in two weeks, though Health Director Rich Bullough doesn’t anticipate reversing the order at that time.
