MARQUETTE — Area health care facilities are implementing new restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

UP Health System – Marquette has announced that visitor restrictions have been implemented at the hospital. Limited visitation will be allowed as follows:

≤ Visiting hours are from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

≤ Visitors are not allowed for patients in the Emergency Department, although some exceptions will apply.

≤ One well visitor will be allowed for patients coming for a procedural appointment.

≤ Visitors are not allowed for patients on the Behavioral Health Unit.

≤ One well visitor at a time will be allowed for inpatients, patients coming to an outpatient appointment and pediatric patients.

≤ Children under age 14 require executive administration approval to visit hospital patients.

Staff continue to wear masks during all patient care. All designated visitors with approval to enter the facility also are required to wear an appropriate mask or face covering. Anyone unable to wear an appropriate mask or face covering will be denied entry into the facility.

Visitors must have executive administration approval to visit patients who are under observation for suspected COVID-19 or test positive for COVID-19. All other special visitation circumstances must have approval from executive administration.

The hospital continues to screen anyone with symptoms consistent with COVID-19 who enters the facility.

UP Health System – Bell also has implemented restrictions. They are:

≤ Visiting hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

≤ One well visitor will be allowed for patients in the Emergency Department.

≤ One well visitor will be allowed for patients coming for a procedural appointment.

≤ One well visitor at a time will be allowed for inpatients and birthing suites, patients coming to an outpatient appointment and pediatric patients.

≤ Children under age 14 require executive administration approval to visit hospital patients.

As with UP Health System – Marquette, all designated visitors with approval to enter the facility are required to wear an appropriate mask or face covering. Individuals who cannot wear an appropriate mask or face covering will be denied entry into the facility.

Visitors must receive approval from executive administration to visit patients under observation for suspected COVID-19, or who have tested positive for COVID. All other special-visitation circumstances must have approval from executive administration.

Staff continues to wear masks at UP Health System – Bell, which screens anyone who enters the facility with symptoms consistent with COVID.

Facility completes outbreak testing

The Marquette County Medical Care Facility, based in Ishpeming, announced on Thursday that after completing outbreak testing, there have been no positive COVID-19 tests for residents and staff.

“Because community spread is high, we will continue with our current precautions to protect our residents and staff from getting COVID,” MCMCF said in a Facebook post. “At this time, anyone spending time with residents must wear an N95 mask and face shield at all times, both inside and outside. We understand that this is less than ideal, but ask for your patience as we navigate through this pandemic.”

Nursing center restricts visits

Norlite Nursing Center in Marquette announced on Thursday that due to the rising COVID-19 positivity rate in Marquette County, it is restricting all social visits at this time.

Compassionate Care visitors may continue to visit their loved ones with twice-weekly COVID testing required, the center said in a Facebook post.

“We apologize for this inconvenience but we need to keep our residents as safe as possible,” Norlite posted.

State of emergency declared

Schoolcraft County Board of Commissioners Chairman Paul Walker on Thursday signed a seven-day State of Emergency Declaration as the county is faced with climbing COVID-19 numbers due to the Delta variant of the virus, with a current 11% positivity rate.

The intent of the State of Emergency Declaration allows for, but is not limited to, remote meetings, working from home if authorized by an employer and limiting face-to-face contact if possible to help stop the spread.

LMAS updates case totals

The Luce-Mackinac-Alger-Schoolcraft District Health Department announced that from March 1-Sept. 25, 2020, those four counties had a total of 112 cases and no deaths. This year, just in September alone, there have been had 616 cases and two deaths.

LMAS’ explanation is that COVID 2021 is not COVID 2020, with the new Delta variant being highly transmissible. Additionally, there is no state order, so the vast majority of people ignore the case numbers and the urging by health departments to wear a face mask when indoors with those not from their immediate household, and in crowded outdoor spaces.

LMAS stressed that the available vaccines are proving effective in keeping people from becoming seriously ill, being hospitalized and of dying. It also noted that people who are fully vaccinated should continue to wear masks because of the possibility of breakthrough cases and spreading COVID to other individuals.

“The numbers here are not fear tactics, they represent real people in our communities,” LMAS said in a Facebook post. “Some not terribly ill, while others are very ill. Some will die, while some will end up with lifelong health issues because they were infected with COVID.”

School district switches to virtual learning

Because of the transmission of COVID in the Manistique Area School district and by order of the LMAS District Health Department, schools will shift to virtual learning through Oct. 8. In-person learning is scheduled to resume on Oct. 11.

Students without internet access were to contact the Manistique Middle/High School for assistance.

Manistique athletics were to continue with several changes. Student-athletes were to be antigen-tested this week, and they also will be tested on Monday and Wednesday while the district is closed.

Superintendent Howard Parmentier said in a district-wide letter that students who do not want to be tested will not be able to participate in their sports during the closure.

“If a student on a team tests positive, that sport wil be discontinued until the closure is complete,” Parmentier wrote.

Kerry Ott, public information officer for the LMAS District Health Department, said there have been 21 cases from Manistique Area Schools since Sept. 20. Three were staff members, two of whom were vaccinated. One student also was fully vaccinated. This put 94 students/staff into quarantine in addition to the 21 in isolation.

Ott said the district reached out to LMAS for recommendations, and LMAS recommended a pause for K-12, which started on Thursday.

Menominee students to wear masks

At the Monday Menominee Area Public Schools board meeting, the board of education decided to adjust the district’s COVID preventive strategies to include universal masking for all students and staff for grades preK-12.

“This means that all students, staff and visitors during the school day will need to wear a mask when inside district buildings,” interim Superintendent Steve Martin said in a district-wide letter. “This is not a decision that was made easily, but the reality is that since the start of the school year, Menominee schools have seen a high number of positive cases and close contacts that have resulted in 150 to 250 absences each day.

“Everyone at Menominee Area Public Schools wants students to attend every day, and we feel the best way to do this right now is to mask up.”

Martin said that universal masking allows the district to shrink the zone for contact tracing down from within 6 feet to within 3 feet, which will “dramatically decrease” the number of students placed into quarantine and reduce the number of students who are absent each day.

Masking, he wrote, remains a requirement when district transportation is used.

The district will continue to monitor the number of cases and absences return to optional masking when the numbers decrease, he said.