Mass testing has resulted in finding nearly 200 new positive cases of COVID-19 at the Waupun Correctional Institution. The state Department of Corrections says 184 positive cases were confirmed Friday at Waupun Correctional. The DOC says testing at Waupun Correctional was completed this week for all staff and inmates. As of Friday results of approximately half of the tests had been received. The DOC says the majority of the individuals were asymptomatic. The DOC says while the increase in testing may increase the number of confirmed positive cases within the agency, “just
as it does in the community, it now enables us to identify those asymptomatic carriers and properly isolate those individuals, which is crucial to reducing spread.” Across all state correctional institutions, more than seven thousand staff and inmates have been tested for COVID-19 by the Wiconsin National Guard with 217 positive tests. The DOC said in a statement:
All institutions continue to follow their emergency preparedness plans using the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as the basis for incident management. As we see an increase in positive cases at WCI, the site will now move into the next phase of its response to mitigate the threat of further spread. During this phase, the Department will continue to follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Wisconsin
Department of Health Services. Persons in our care with positive test results will be medically isolated and separated from the general population, where they will be monitored closely by our team of healthcare professionals. All staff at WCI are required to wear face masks, and all persons in our care and staff are provided with the necessary PPE at all times, such as N-95 masks, when appropriate.
