Olmsted County Public Health officials are advising people who visited crowded areas in downtown Rochester between June 26 — July 7 to call their health care providers to see if they need to be tested for Covid-19.

Public Health Director Graham Briggs said Thursday that his department is monitoring a cluster of cases linked to the downtown area. Many of the cases, he said, are connected specifically to bars where people were coming in close contact with each other, and often not wearing masks.

Because many of the downtown visitors who have confirmed cases of Covid-19 visited multiple venues, Briggs said it is hard to label one specific location a hot spot. At least one bar, Dooley’s Pub, has already closed after several of its employees tested positive for the virus.

County figures show an uptick in cases over the past month — with new cases reaching triple digits each of the past three weeks. Like in other cities, health officials here say the age of people who are being infected is trending younger — with people under 40 now making up 60 percent of cases.

Graphic courtesy Olmsted County Public Health

“We have seen an increase in cases, and we have seen risks associated with these newer cases start popping up more and more routinely in individuals that are in situations where some of the recommendations are not necessarily being followed as well as we would like,” said Briggs.

Olmsted County is now reporting 1,196 total cases with 17 deaths, two of which were reported Wednesday. There are 144 cases considered active.

Who should consider being tested?

Briggs said anyone who visited downtown venues where precautions were not being taken should call their medical provider about testing.

While bars are a primary driver for the cluster of cases, the recommendation from Public Health also includes any other place where people gathered in close proximity for prolonged periods of time.

Briggs noted he is less concerned about people who visited downtown for work or to spend time outdoors while following social distancing measures.

“I don’t think we are as concerned about somebody who went out to dinner and was apart from other people, or sat outside and the people around them were wearing masks,” he said. “The concern we are seeing are people who were in close social settings and around others for extended periods of time where mask use and social distancing wasn’t being observed.”

Public Health staff are now using contact tracing to get ahold of people who may have been infected to advise them to self quarantine and get tested. Staff are also reaching out to managers of downtown establishments to provide education and answer questions on how they can take additional precautions to better protect employees and customers.

Looking ahead, Briggs said he is optimistic that the city’s new mask mandate could help slow the transmission of the virus. The mandate applies to people ages 2 and up while visiting indoor public spaces.

“I do think the masking requirement that took effect [Wednesday] in the city of Rochester is likely to impact this greatly,” said Briggs. “Part of this, too, is just a reminder we can see cases pop up very quickly with this virus, once people start clustering together.”