- Details
- By Levi Rickert
UPDATED: The tests on the two individuals came back negative.
SAN CARLOS INDIAN RESERVATION — Health officials on the San Carlos Indian Reservation, near Globe, Ariz., are awaiting the results of tests on two individuals who have experienced COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) symptoms. The two were immediately quarantined.
On Friday, the San Carlos Apache Tribe provided an update.
"We are pleased to report that the tests came back negative for this virus," Victoria Began, CEO for the San Carlos Apache Healthcare Corporation, who emphasized her staff has put in strong protocols to deal with the testing for COVID-19.
Indian Health Service (IHS) released the following statement sent via email in response to an inquiry by Native News Online on Thursday:
“The Indian Health Service continues to work closely with our tribal partners and state and local public health officials to coordinate a comprehensive public health response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. For more information on COVID-19 and how to prevent illness, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
All IHS facilities are capable of testing patients for COVID-19. There is no cost to patients for this testing. Following guidance established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, clinicians, including those at the IHS, collect samples with standard specimen collections swabs and access laboratory testing through public health laboratories in their jurisdictions. CDC guidance says clinicians should use their judgment to determine if a patient has signs and symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and whether the patient should be tested. Decisions on which patients receive testing should be based on the local epidemiology of COVID-19, patient risk or exposures, as well as the clinical course of illness. Clinicians are strongly encouraged to test for other causes of respiratory illness, including infections such as influenza.”
This is a developing story and Native News Online will provide an update when more information becomes available.
Editor’s Note: Native News Online remains committed to providing accurate and up-to-date information about the serious threat of the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) pandemic.
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