Democratic Congressman Mark Pocan is in quarantine following his mother’s positive COVID-19 test.
He shared his story Monday (November 16), urging the public to take precautions.
Pocan released a statement Monday, explaining that he was his 91-year-old mother on a two-hour drive to move her into a new nursing home last week. A day after the move, on November 10, a previous test of hers came back positive.
Since that day, Pocan, who represents the Madison area, has been quarantining.
“I wore a mask while moving her, have quarantined since & tested negative myself on Friday,” (November 13) Pocan wrote in a Facebook post sharing his statement. “Neither of us is symptomatic & she’s doing well. Folks, stay home & wear a mask.”
Pocan plans to test for the virus again at the end of this week, according to his statement.
“Wisconsin has some of the worst numbers in the nation for COVID-19, including a positivity rate in the mid-30%s,” Pocan said. “Fortunately, the nursing home staff contacted me immediately after learning of my mother’s positive result and I was able to quarantine without delay."
"Unfortunately, too many people in Wisconsin don’t get that information in a timely way due to the low number of contract tracers we have hired in Wisconsin," he continued. "Cases in Wisconsin continue to rise weekly and we need federal and state action to help protect our communities immediately. I urge everyone to stay at home when possible and wear a mask whenever they are in contact with others. Only together, can we stop the spread of this deadly pandemic.”
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