The Maine Veterans’ Home in South Paris, Lisbon Public Works and the Oxford Casino all have outbreaks of COVID-19, according to the state.
Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, announced the outbreak at his regular news conference Tuesday. He said the state has been investigating the Maine Veterans’ Home outbreak, while the outbreaks at Lisbon Public Works and the Oxford Casino are new.
There are 25 cases at the veterans’ home, including 18 residents and seven staff members, according to the facility. The home provides long-term and short-term care, memory care and rehabilitation for up to 62 people. It also has 28 rooms for assisted living residents.
The outbreak was discovered Jan. 9 during routine staff testing. Spokesman Josh Scroggins said all cases have been contained within one unit of the home.
He said the home has taken steps to limit the spread of the virus, including enhanced infection control, restricted visitation, and testing twice a week.
The state also started investigating an outbreak at the veterans’ home in Augusta this month. Six cases were reported there last week. A Maine CDC spokesman said that case count remains at six.
There are six cases at Lisbon Public Works and five at the casino.
Jack Sours, general manager for the casino, said the casino has been in compliance with all state rules and guidelines, including requiring masks and temperature checks for anyone who enters the building, limiting capacity and keeping to a statewide curfew.
The casino remains open.
“I think the casino is safe,” Sours said.
The outbreaks were announced Tuesday, the same day Maine recorded 662 new cases and 11 deaths.
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