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CHINO, CA— Eleven staff and one inmate at the California Institution for Men (CIM) in Chino tested positive for COVID-19. Tests for two staff and three inmates are pending. Except for the inmate, the eleven CIM staff have been self-quarantined away from their place of employment.
Health professionals from San Bernardino County Public Health are working closely with CIM and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to address the situation, which includes testing and contact tracing.
Under the authority of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), CIM Correctional Lieutenant Tom Lopez stated, “CDCR and California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) are dedicated to the safety of everyone who lives in, works in, and visits our state prisons. We are continuously evaluating and implementing proactive measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and keep our CDCR population and the community-at-large safe.”
CDCR has announced its plan to further protect staff and inmates from the spread of COVID-19 in state prisons, which include CIM. The plan includes the following:
- Temporarily suspend the intake of new inmates and cancel in-person visits.
- Create increased capacity and space to help with inmate movement, physical distancing, and isolation efforts.
- Make greater use of the state’s private and public Community Correctional Facilities, as well as maximize open spaces in prisons, such as gymnasiums, to increase capacity and inmate movement options.
CDCR has protocols for testing and quarantine in place that follow recommendations by CDPH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDCR and CCHCS have launched an internal patient registry to assist institutions in monitoring patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 and track all individuals by risk. This registry also includes release date information for each individual, in the event that individuals are to be considered for early release during the pandemic. This tool is not publicly available as it contains personal health care information protected by medical privacy laws.
For more information regarding CDCR’s preparedness and response efforts for COVID-19, please visit the CDCR COVID-19 Preparedness page at www.cdcr.ca.gov/covid19.
For information about the coronavirus crisis, visit the County’s coronavirus website at sbcovid19.com. New information and resources are updated daily. The public can also contact the COVID-19 hotline from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday at (909) 387-3911, or email the County at coronavirus@dph.sbcounty.gov.
