Ada County’s coronavirus cases double as six counties report new infections
Eight of Idaho’s 44 counties have a confirmed case of coronavirus, according to the latest numbers released by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and health districts late Friday afternoon.
Idaho has 36 confirmed cases, including the first case for Canyon and Bingham counties. Blaine added three more cases for a total of 19. Ada County added four more Friday for a total of eight, second-most in the state.
Health and Welfare established its Order to Self-Isolate in Blaine County beginning at 11:59 p.m. Friday and running through April 13. The order was announced by Gov. Brad Little on Thursday.
New confirmed cases
Ada County: Four new cases. Specific details on the patients have not been released. However, earlier Friday, Boise State University, Micron Technology Inc. and the Boise VA Medical Center reported that employees had tested positive.
Bingham County: A 37-year-old male was the first confirmed case in the Southeastern Idaho Public Health district based in Pocatello. The man is recovering at home from mild symptoms, according to a press release.
Blaine County: Three new cases. Specific details weren’t released.
Canyon County: The first lab-confirmed case of COVID-19 in the county is a male in his 60s. He is recovering at home from mild symptoms. He recently traveled to a location that is seeing community spread, according to Southwest District Health officials.
Kootenai County: One new case is a male under the age of 30. The individual has been self-isolating since returning from travel and has experienced mild symptoms, according to a press release. The second is a female in her 60s from Kootenai County. She is self-isolating and recovering from mild symptoms at home, according to the release.
Teton County: One new case, for two total. Specific details on the patient have not been released. A woman under 50 acquired the virus outside the country and has experienced mild symptoms, according to East Idaho News. She was not hospitalized.
City and county orders
The Order to Self-Isolate in Blaine County directs everyone living in Blaine County to self-isolate at home.
Violation of, or failure to comply with, the order could constitute a misdemeanor publishable by fine, imprisonment or both, the order says.
Residents may leave to provide or receive certain essential services, engage in certain essential activities and work for essential business and government services, according to a press release. The order also exempts individuals experiencing homelessness from the self-isolation order, but urges them to find shelter or contact a government agency that can help; directs all businesses and governmental agencies to cease operations at physical locations in Blaine County; prohibits any non-essential gatherings of any number of people; and orders all non-essential travel to cease. Restaurants still can provide takeout and delivery.
Three cities also took action Friday:
▪ Meridian Mayor Robert Simison sent a social distancing order for all restaurants, bars and other entertainment venues to ensure a minimum distance of 6 feet between customers in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. The social distancing order will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and run until April 4.
▪ McCall and many Valley County partners have issued a travel advisory asking potential visitors to avoid coming to the area until further notice.
▪ Moscow issued a public health emergency order to include a restriction on gatherings of groups of more than 10 people within the city boundaries. This prohibits dine-in service for bars and restaurants, but the order does provide for curbside pickup, takeout and drive-thru.
St. Luke’s changes
St. Luke’s Health System announced it’s suspending all non-urgent and non-emergent operative and invasive procedures effective Monday. A new “no visitor” policy started Friday.
Non-essential clinic visits also will be suspended. Some visits may be converted to non-traditional visits through the use of telephone, video visits or e-visits where available and appropriate. All other appointments will be rescheduled.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the case in Teton County. It was credited to the incorrect county in the state numbers.
This story was originally published March 20, 2020 at 5:35 PM.
