Coronavirus in Massachusetts: 8 Billerica jail employees test positive for COVID-19

April 3, 2020
MassLive
By Jackson Cote

Eight employees at a Billerica jail have tested positive for the coronavirus, officials announced Thursday.

Seven staff members working at the Middlesex Jail & House of Correction were diagnosed with COVID-19. Another employee who works in a position located outside the facility also tested positive, according to a statement from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office.

“All those employees who have tested positive will remain off duty until cleared by medical professionals to return to work,” the statement said.

The news comes less than a week after authorities announced two inmates at the jail had been diagnosed with the viral respiratory infection. There have been no new confirmed cases amongst the prison population since then, according to the sheriff’s office.

Twenty-three inmates, three Department of Correction employees and one medical providerhave also tested positive for the virus at the Massachusetts Treatment Center, according to the DOC.