COVID-19 outbreak at Maine Correctional Center grows to 81 confirmed cases (By Dennis Hoey of the Portland Press Herald)
The COVID-19 outbreak at the Maine Correctional Center in Windham has grown to 81 confirmed cases, the Department of Corrections said on Tuesday.
The department said that 72 inmates and nine staff members have tested positive after taking rapid antigen tests.
The vast majority of inmates who tested positive are asymptomatic. Only a few inmates have reported mild symptoms, the state said.
Inmates who tested positive lived in two housing units at the correctional facility. The state said it will now house all of those inmates in one housing unit. Universal testing at the Windham facility has found that the disease has been contained to the two housing units.
The Department of Corrections said it plans to continue retesting inmates and staff for the rest of the week.
In addition to the outbreak in Windham, three inmates at the Maine State Prison in Warren tested positive for COVID-19 after taking rapid antigen tests. All three inmates live in the same prison unit. A total of three staff members at the Maine State Prison have also tested positive for the virus. The Maine State Prison plans to retest staff and inmates throughout the rest of the week.
U.S. FDA warns about false positive results from COVID-19 antigen tests
(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it is alerting clinical laboratory staff and healthcare providers that false positive results can occur with COVID-19 antigen tests.
The decision was made following reports of false positive results associated with the tests used in nursing homes. [bit.ly/389ohyw]…