By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Even though there are COVID-19 cases at Lansing Correctional Facility, at least as far as is known by the Reno County Health Department, there are no known infections at Hutchinson Correctional Facility.
"My understanding is that the Department of Corrections will do a press release based off of the first and second confirmations within a facility," said Health Department Director Nick Baldetti. "After that, it will be contingent on the local level."
The assumption is that since there hasn't been a release, that there are no cases that are laboratory confirmed. The county health department would receive that information.
"Those cases, regardless if they were an inmate or a staff member, those cases would be lumped into the county jurisdiction of the facility. That would be in our numbers."
It's important to note that there must be symptomology both present and severe enough to require outside care in order for any tests to be administered.
"We would most certainly differentiate between an employee and an inmate," Baldetti said. "We would have to do that with the Department of Corrections as well, just to make sure that we're all on the same page."
As of yesterday, there were 18 laboratory confirmed cases associated with the Lansing Correctional Facility outbreak.