BROWN COUNTY — COVID-19 cases are spiking in Brown County with an increase of new cases not seen in months.

Over 40 new laboratory cases have been confirmed in the last week. The number of new COVID cases this August is 63. This means the number of new COVID cases reported in the first two weeks of August is higher than the number of new COVID cases reported in June and July combined. Brown County Public Health only confirmed five new COVID cases in June and 18 cases in July. This August already has a higher COVID case count than last August, and Brown County Public Health is expecting even more cases tomorrow.

Brown County Public Health Director Karen Moritz confirmed the Delta variant is responsible for most of the new cases. In nearly every recently confirmed COVID case, the virus sequencing indicated it was the Delta variant.

“Delta is significantly transmissible,” Moritz said, “especially in the unvaccinated.”

In Brown County, a little under 13,000 people have been completely vaccinated. This is a little over 50% of the county.

Moritz said a few breakthrough cases can occur in which a vaccinated person contracts COVID, but the number of breakthrough cases has been low. With the Delta variant’s higher transmissibility, the odds of the unvaccinated contracting the virus are higher.

Public Health is once again highly recommending people wear masks indoors and the unvaccinated become vaccinated. These recommendations are the same as before, but Moritz said without a peacetime emergency, masks cannot be mandated and these are only recommendations.

Businesses are allowed to institute their own mask mandates and local schools could put in place a mask requirement, but Public Health can only make guidelines and recommendations.

Moritz is not optimistic the public will follow this recommendation. She said some businesses have started enforcing indoor mask requirements again, but at this time no schools have put a mask mandate in place.

Moritz said without the peacetime emergency the public has no appetite to follow the recommendation.

Brown County students are expected to return to the classroom within the next few weeks. The COVID vaccine is only available for those 12 and older. At this time, 23% of 12 to 15-year-olds are vaccinated and 35% of 16 to 17-year-olds are vaccinated in Brown County. This means the majority of students in Brown County are not vaccinated.

In addition, only 43% of Brown County residents between ages 18 and 49 are vaccinated. This is the age range most likely to have students in school. The risk of transmitting the virus to the family is higher than last year because of the Delta variant.

“If you have a family member exposed to the virus, frequently other members of the family get it,” Moritz said. “With the Delta variant, the numbers will go up.”

Public Health is still recommending individuals exposed to COVID isolate for 10 days. The incubation period for the Delta variant is quicker. Patients with the Delta variant could test positive sooner.