County Executive Parisi’s Statement on Lawsuit Filed Against Public Health Madison/Dane County’s Latest Emergency Order

August 26, 2020
Ariana Vruwink, 608-267-8823

Dane County Executive Joe Parisi issued the following statement regarding a lawsuit filed today by Wisconsin conservative school choice advocates, along with Dane County religious and independent schools, against health orders by Public Health Madison/Dane County:

“The order for schools is lawful and we will defend it vigorously, because the reason Public Health put it in place is worth fighting for—the health of our kids and community.

“There has been a 90% increase in the number of COVID-19 cases among children in the United States in recent weeks—21% in the past two weeks alone, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association. Over 90 children have died. The science community still doesn't entirely know the lifelong impacts for those who test positive at a young age. We will all learn together over the course of the next generation the true effect of what it meant to once have had COVID-19.

“COVID-19 is an incredibly contagious virus that deeply impacts those it comes into contact with. We all want schools and workplaces to be fully open and life the way we knew it to resume. Until that happens, we don’t want families to go through the harrowing weeks of having loved ones on ventilators. We have seen rates of infection come down here, not by accident, but because of decisive actions. This order, like those, doesn't come without some sacrifice. But it does keep our priority and focus where it should be—keeping our community safe.”