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There are now 13 confirmed cases of covid-19 in Columbia County.
A 1-year-old Columbia County boy is among the latest to be hit with covid-19, local health officials said Sunday.
He is one of three new cases announced Sunday, bringing the county total to 13 cases.
Suwannee County's total rose to 18 while Union County recorded its first confirmed case, a 60-year-old woman.
The Florida Department of Health in Columbia County is now conducting its contact investigation and working on identifying and notifying individuals who will need to self-monitor for symptoms for a 14-day period. Contact investigations are a critical way for staff epidemiologists to track and prevent the spread of disease.
The CDC has updated recommendations for face coverings. The federal agency now recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies) especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.
It is critical to emphasize that maintaining 6-feet social distancing remains important to slowing the spread of the virus. CDC is additionally advising the use of simple cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus and help people who may have the virus and do not know it from transmitting it to others.
Cloth face coverings fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials at low cost can be used as an additional, voluntary public health measure. The cloth face coverings recommended are not surgical masks or N-95 respirators. Those are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and other medical first responders, as recommended by current CDC guidance.