KOOTENAI COUNTY, Idaho — A candidate for Kootenai County Sheriff and his wife announced Monday that they have tested positive for coronavirus.
Mike Bauer made the announcement on his campaign Facebook page. He said they were tested at Providence Health in Spokane.
Bauer said the tests were routine ahead of his wife being admitted to the hospital for a stem cell transplant. He said they had very minor symptoms that were equivalent to a “minor head cold.”
Both Bauer and his wife are self-isolating at home and they expect to make a speedy and full recovery.
“As Joey's hospitalization approached, we increased our recommended prevention measures to avoid this, including extensive cleaning, hand washing, and mask-wearing, to no avail,” Bauer wrote on Facebook. “Therefore, I repeat, as I have said before, that when elected your Sheriff I can not (sic) conduct criminal enforcement for a mask mandate in Kootenai County.”
His announcement comes just days after the Panhandle Health District board voted to rescind the face mask mandate in Kootenai County and as the City of Coeur d'Alene was discussing the creation of its own mask mandate. The board indicated that a recommendation to wear masks remains in place.
The health district moved Kootenai and Boundary counties to its highest COVID-19 risk category for the first time on Thursday. This decision from health officials could impose more restrictions on schools and business.
Kootenai and Boundary Counties moved into the "Substantial (Red)" risk category, while Shoshone County moved into the "Moderate (Orange)" category. Bonner and Benewah counties remain in the "Minimal (Yellow)" risk category.
Idaho is seeing its largest coronavirus spike since the pandemic began, with new cases increasing statewide by 46.5% percent over the past two weeks, according to the Associated Press. The state is currently sixth in the nation for new cases per capita, with a positivity rate of just over 15% — one of the highest in the nation.