4 new COVID-19 outbreaks found in Charlotte. More testing required, health director says
Four more Charlotte residential care facilities have reported COVID-19 outbreaks, Mecklenburg County officials reported this week.
Across North Carolina, health leaders are ramping up testing inside assisted living facilities and nursing homes. The goal is for staff to be tested every other week to curb exposure risks, county Health Director Gibbie Harris said Wednesday.
In Mecklenburg County, there are 33 “active outbreaks” at congregate living facilities and three in child care centers.
The new outbreaks reported by Mecklenburg health officials Tuesday are:
▪ Charlotte Assisted Living/Memory Care on Willow Ridge Road
▪ Cypress Independent Living on Marching Duck Drive
▪ Cypress Memory Care on Cypress Club Drive
▪ St. John’s Group Home on St Johns Church Road
The state Department of Health and Human Services defines an outbreak as two or more cases originating from a single location in a short period of time.
The trends of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations locally are improving, health data show. Earlier this week, a Charlotte Observer analysis of Mecklenburg data showed the county’s weekly average positivity rate of COVID-19 tests has dropped to the lowest point since mid-May.