News outlet reports COVID-19 in NoCo hospital worker, state doesn’t confirm
DENVER — A Northern Colorado hospital worker recently tested positive for coronavirus, according to a Colorado Sun report that cites an anonymous source.
A headline in a Greeley Tribune story that cites the Sun report indicates that employee works at the North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley.
State health officials did not confirm that report when asked by BizWest Thursday afternoon during a virtual press conference held by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
SPONSORED CONTENT
Empowering communities
Rocky Mountain Health Plans (RMHP), part of the UnitedHealthcare family, has pledged its commitment to uplift these communities through substantial investments in organizations addressing the distinct needs of our communities.
“I cannot confirm that,” said Scott Bookman, who is managing the CDPH’s coronavirus response. “I don’t know what case you’re referring to, but I can’t confirm that.”
State officials did not comment further on the situation when sent links to the Sun and Tribune reports in question.
Officials with Banner Health, the company that runs NCMC, Banner Fort Collins Medical Center and McKee Medical Center, also declined to confirm whether an employee tested positive for COVID-19, a new strain of the coronavirus family that has infected more than 130,000 people globally.
“Federal privacy laws protecting patient information are not set aside during an emergency. Banner places the utmost priority on protecting the safety and privacy of our patients and will continue to do so at this time,” Banner regional public relations director Sara Quale said in an email. “When a patient provides written consent to share private information, they can do that with conditions including with whom the information should be shared. There are times we have information to share internally, but do not share that information externally.”
She added: “In the event where we have a COVID-19 case involving an employee, we will follow the protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in cooperation with the state and county health departments. As soon as a situation is brought to our attention, and in an abundance of caution, we will quickly notify all potentially exposed individuals and continue to follow the CDC guidelines.”
© 2020 BizWest Media LLC
