Nebraska Governor Overruled Public Health Officials’ Warning To Close ‘Hot Spot’ Meatpacking Plant
Documents obtained by ProPublica show that in March public health officials in Grand Island, Nebraska, wanted a JBS meatpacking plant closed after several workers tested positive for the novel coronavirus. But Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) said no. Since then, cases have skyrocketed and Nebraska has become one of the fastest-growing hot spots for COVID-19 in the nation. News from other meatpacking facilities is reported, as well.
ProPublica:
What Happened When Health Officials Wanted To Close a Meatpacking Plant, But The Governor Said No
On Tuesday, March 31, an emergency room doctor at the main hospital in Grand Island, Nebraska, sent an urgent email to the regional health department: “Numerous patients” from the JBS beef packing plant had tested positive for COVID-19. The plant, he feared, was becoming a coronavirus “hot spot.” The town’s medical clinics were also reporting a rapid increase in cases among JBS workers. The next day, Dr. Rebecca Steinke, a family medicine doctor at one of the clinics, wrote to the department’s director: “Our message is really that JBS should shut down for 2 weeks and have a solid screening plan before re-opening.” (Grabell, 5/7)
Politico:
Azar Faulted Workers' 'Home And Social' Conditions For Meatpacking Outbreaks
The country’s top health official downplayed concerns over the public health conditions inside meatpacking plants, suggesting on a call with lawmakers that workers were more likely to catch coronavirus based on their social interactions and group living situations, three participants said. HHS Secretary Alex Azar told a bipartisan group that he believed infected employees were bringing the virus into processing plants where a rash of cases have killed at least 20 workers and forced nearly two-dozen plants to close, according to three people on the April 28 call. (Cancryn and Barron-Lopez, 5/7)
The Associated Press:
138 Central California Meat Plant Employees Have Coronavirus
At least 138 employees at a meat packing plant in Central California have tested positive for the coronavirus, officials say. Kings County Supervisor Doug Verboon told the Fresno Bee that the outbreak at Central Valley Meat Co. in Hanford accounts for nearly two-thirds of the coronavirus cases in the rural county, which has a total of 211 reported cases. (5/7)
