Testing finds 21 new incarcerated positives, one staff positive at Northern State Correctional Facility
Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Department of Corrections (Vermont DOC) today is reporting 20 incarcerated individuals at Northern State Correctional Facility (NSCF) in Newport tested positive for COVID-19 in outbreak testing conducted August 27. One additional incarcerated individual tested positive from a test taken after they presented with symptoms.
Seventeen of the 21 positive cases are in individuals who live in a general population unit where a currently COVID-positive staff member worked, and where four prior incarcerated positive cases were discovered. That unit is now being used as a surge unit. The remaining four positive individuals come from three other units and the infirmary.
In addition to the incarcerated positive cases, one staff member tested positive for the virus in the August 27 outbreak testing. That individual is a previously identified close contact, and has been quarantined during the infectious period.
As of Monday, there are positive cases in staff, the incarcerated population, or both at five of Vermont’s six facilities.
Families and friends of incarcerated individuals are encouraged to reach out to the Vermont DOC Office of Constituency Services with questions: https://doc.vermont.gov/information-inmate-families-and-friends. Click here for the direct link to the online Friends and Family portal.
Updates on the COVID-19 response in Vermont’s correctional facilities can be found at https://doc.vermont.gov/covid-19-information-page.
Source: Waterbury, Vt., August 30, 2021 – Vermont Department of Corrections