LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. — The Lincoln County Health Department has ended its local "COVID Stops With Me" order, which included a mask mandate.
In a press release, the health department said recent conditions moved the county into the lowest risk category as defined by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
The press release said masks are still highly recommended. The health department said businesses and schools can still require masks if they want.
"We urge residents to continue making good decisions to lower their risk and protect the community," the press release said.
The health department is encouraging residents to sign up to get vaccinated. The Lincoln County Health Department has a COVID-19 pre-registration form on its website; click here for the Spanish version.
"We expect to receive additional doses of vaccine to administer," the health department said in an email alert. "We are hopeful that this will become a regular occurrence and we will be able to start scheduling clinics on a more routine basis. Moving forward, we will not be sending out a Nixle message each time we receive a new vaccine shipment. Please be attentive about answering your phone when receiving calls from the health department."
The county is also seeking volunteers to help with the vaccination process in clinical or non-clinical roles. Fill out this form to register as a volunteer.
According to the Missouri vaccine dashboard, Lincoln County has the ninth-lowest percent of residents with at least one vaccine dose, at 9.4%. The statewide average is 16.8% according to the dashboard.