The Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) announced it's taking additional steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 at its facilities.
Officials said disinfectant foggers, upgraded PPE and strategic cohorts are among those steps taken to battle coronavirus among staff and inmates.
The fogger arrived at the Northern Nevada Correctional Center in Carson City, where it's being used to sanitize common areas and individual cells.
Additional machines have been ordered and will be dispersed throughout the facilities.
The department's protocol on use of PPE has been updated to require all staff who are within six feet of inmates for more than 15 minutes to wear the N95 mask, which offers more protection against airborne particles than cloth masks.
NDOC has been separating COVID-19 positive and COVID-19 potentially exposed inmates by way of isolate and quarantine, but due to the rapid rise of cases, inmates will be separated into three completely distinct cohorts.
The cohorts include:
- Isolation cohort comprised of only offenders who have tested positive for COVID-19
- Quarantine cohort comprised of only offenders who have been exposed to COVID-19, are exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19 (and awaiting COVID-19 test results) or are awaiting COVID-19 testing results
- Non-exposed cohort comprised of only offenders who are asymptomatic and have not been exposed to COVID-19
Additionally, the department is pairing staff that has recovered from the virus with inmates who have not yet contracted the virus or who are among those most high-risk.
2,442 offenders have tested positive, along with 561 staff so far at the Nevada Department of Corrections. That's about 21 percent of the total population of 11,540 across all facilities.
Active cases are at 1,624 inmates and 205 staff.
Eight inmates and two employees have died.
