Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Tribal Health Officials received notification of the first confirmed case of COVID-19 within the boundaries of the reservation. According to a release, the individual, whose information is private, has known travel history with an infected family member.
Indian Health Service and Tribal Health officials are conducting contact tracing to identify anyone who may have come into contact with this patient, and once identified, they will be asked to quarantine for 14 days.
Health Service Director Brian Brunelle shared his concern for the affected individual and emphasized the importance of partnerships.
“Leech Lake has strong Leadership, Tribal Health and an Incident Management Team working everyday to keep our residents safe and healthy,” said Brunelle.
“By working collaboratively with all reservation departments and state agencies, we’ll be able to better monitor and contain this outbreak and deliver needed resources and supplies to the people of Leech Lake”.
Leech Lake Tribal Health, in collaboration with Cass Lake Indian Health Service, has a COVID-19 hotline staffed 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays at 218-335-3426 or 218-335-3247.
