The Maine Department of Corrections has received results for one-third of the coronavirus tests from a Windham prison, and all have been negative.
A man who is incarcerated at the Maine Correctional Center tested positive for the virus this week, which prompted the widespread test. He is isolated and has not required hospitalization.
Since Tuesday, the corrections department has sent 484 samples to the state lab in Augusta. On Thursday evening, the department said in a news release that it had received results for 221 people – 120 inmates and 101 employees. None were positive for COVID-19.
Commissioner Randall Liberty said Wednesday that the nearly 700 people who are incarcerated or employed at Maine Correctional Center would be tested for the virus by the end of the week. That facility housed 462 inmates – 399 men and 63 women – as of Wednesday. It has 216 employees.
The department has said the remaining tests at Maine Correctional Center will happen Friday. Despite pressure from advocates, inmates and unions, the commissioner has said he does not plan to conduct widespread testing at other facilities. The state’s total incarcerated population was 1,899 adults and 32 youth as of Thursday.
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