In response to the Wisconsin Supreme Court throwing out the extension of the state’s Safer at Home order, the Evers Administration and the Department of Health Services have put out the scope for creation of rules for “establishing protections for Wisconsin citizens by maintaining appropriate social distancing or other measures to slow and contain the spread of COVID-19 and protect health and safety, while turning the dial to reopen Wisconsin’s economy.”
Evers approved the statement of the scope of rules. A legislative committee will need to approve these rules for them to go into effect.
The state said it had two particular objectives to focus on with creating new rules, which it says the ruling on Wednesday allows them to do:
– (1) “ ‘Boxing in’ COVID-19 to limit its spread to healthy Wisconsinites
– (2) “Reopening and support of the Wisconsin economy without creating undue risk of spreading the virus and thereby causing additional long-term economic disruptions.”
“DHS has determined that continued social distancing and other measures to be considered as described above will be necessary going forward to control the spread of COVID-19 and ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the people of Wisconsin,” the statement explains.
The state’s statement also says the DHS has been given authority under state law to “promulgate rules as necessary for the control and suppression of communicable disease in this state, including COVID-19, and for the quarantine and disinfection of persons, localities, or things infected or suspected of being infected by COVID-19. DHS further has clear, broad, and explicit authority to close schools and forbid public gatherings in schools, churches, or other places.”