California omicron cases linked to Milwaukee County wedding, Wisconsin, city health officials say
Five of 12 people who were diagnosed with COVID-19 after attending a Milwaukee County wedding Nov. 27 were infected with the omicron variant, state and city health officials said.
All 12 are California residents, a news release from the state Department of Health Services said.
The DHS and the City of Milwaukee Health Department are investigating the outbreak from the wedding.
A California State lab used genomic sequencing to identify that five of the 12 people diagnosed with COVID-19 were infected with the omicron variant, the news release said. Genomic sequencing data is not yet available for the other cases.
According to DHS, one of the individuals attended the wedding after returning from international travel.
"The 12 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 are between the ages of 18-49. All individuals were vaccinated, and most had received boosters. They are mildly symptomatic and no one has been hospitalized," the news release, issued late Friday, said.
DHS and the City of Milwaukee Health Department are contacting all Wisconsinites who were close contacts, and isolation and quarantine protocols are being followed, the news release said.
The first confirmed case of the omicron variant in the U.S. was first detected in California.
"No cases among Wisconsin residents have been identified at this time but the investigation is ongoing," the DHS said in a statement.
“Although the news that this variant is continuing to spread throughout the country is concerning, it should not be a cause for panic. We know COVID-19 vaccines are effective at preventing serious illness and death,” DHS Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake said in the release. "That’s why it’s critical that all eligible Wisconsinites get vaccinated or get their booster as soon as possible and follow public health best practices to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.”
Contact Drake Bentley at (414) 391-5647 or DBentley1@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DrakeBentleyMJS.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Five omicron cases linked to Milwaukee County wedding, health officials say
