At least 20 people, including eight children, have contracted the novel coronavirus linked to an outbreak at a child care facility in Lake Oswego, Ore., according to a local report.
Twelve teachers and eight students have tested positive for COVID-19 following a reported outbreak at KinderCare in Lake Oswego, according to local newspaper Willamette Week, which noted the facility is the first of its kind in the Beaver State “to experience a publicly reported outbreak” of the novel virus.
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Parents whose children attend KinderCare were notified of the outbreak in a June 25 email, per the newspaper. A spokesperson for Clackamas County Public Health told Willamette Week that there are additional cases involving family members of the children and teachers initially infected, though would not say how many such cases have been reported.
"The health and safety of our children, families and staff is always our top priority," said Emily Snyder, associate communications manager for KinderCare, in a statement to the newspaper. "In response to the COVID-19 crisis, we've developed enhanced health and safety measures in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a panel of medical experts to ensure our centers remain as clean and safe as possible.
"As soon as we learned of the positive diagnoses in Lake Grove, we partnered with the Clackamas County Health Department and closed the center for 14 days to allow for a professional deep cleaning, retraining on our protocols and retesting of our staff before we reopen. We're also taking the extra step of retraining all of our Oregon center staff to ensure we're delivering against the highest standards possible. We're looking forward to welcoming families back to our center soon."
Fox News has reached out to KinderCare with a request for comment on this story.
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The news comes after a child care facility in Colorado also saw an outbreak of the novel virus in May, with at least four adults and one child being infected at the time.
To date, Oregon has confirmed nearly 9,000 cases of the novel virus and more than 200 COVID-19-related deaths, according to official estimates.
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