St. Mary’s County health officer orders non‑congregate sheltering; commissioners approve emergency funding and hazard pay

Health Officer Meenakshi Gard Brewster on April 7 issued a public health order directing St. Mary’s County to locate and reserve non‑congregate shelters to allow vulnerable residents and exposed first responders to quarantine or isolate away from the general public.

Why it matters: The order, effective April 7, 2020, was issued amid widespread community transmission of COVID‑19 in the county and cites federal and state emergency declarations as well as FEMA guidance that non‑congregate sheltering must be documented by an official public health order.

Brewster, the county health officer, summarized the public health rationale at the start of the briefing and repeated a science point emphasized throughout the meeting: “the virus can be transmitted by people before they even suspect that they have the illness.” She explained that, because people can be infectious before symptoms appear, residents should "monitor for 14 days" after exposure and that symptomatic persons should isolate, using separate bedrooms and bathrooms where possible.

Brewster read the order’s preamble aloud in the meeting, citing the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declarations, President Trump’s March 13 national emergency declaration, the FEMA March 18 memorandum on non‑congregate sheltering, and Governor Hogan’s March 5…