Dobbs issues COVID-19 home isolation order

Mississippi Chief Medical Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs has issued an executive order requiring home isolation on first knowledge of a positive COVID-19 test in the state.

Dobbs’ order requires infected Mississippians to isolate for a 10-day period. There are also provisions for fines and possible jail time for refusal to do so.

You can read Dobbs’ order on the Mississippi State Department of Health website.

The action comes as Mississippi recorded another 5,048 cases of COVID-19 in the state and an additional 54 deaths. DeSoto County has reported 25,652 cases, 296 deaths. One additional death was reported in DeSoto County from between Aug. 8-19 and the county Friday reported 182 new COVID-19 cases.

Today MSDH is reporting 5,048 more cases of COVID-19 in Mississippi, 54 deaths, and 172 ongoing outbreaks in long-term care facilities. State #covid19 totals: 406,249 cases, 7,991 deaths, and 1,099,899 persons fully vaccinated. Full information: https://t.co/YCv9xPyJDk pic.twitter.com/MW2mW6RZMV

— MS Dept of Health (@msdh) August 20, 2021