Three Bassett Employees

Test Positive For COVID-19

COOPERSTOWN – Three of the five cases of COVID-19 reported in county residents were employees at Bassett Hospital, according to Heidi Bond, public health director, Otsego County Department of Health.

“We don’t know where the employee picked it up, but they gave it to a family member, who also works at Bassett,” she said.

According to Karen Huxtable-Hooker, Bassett spokesman, the hospital was made aware of the incident last Friday. Working with the state and county Department of Health, testing and contact tracing was initiated on individuals who may have been exposed, prompting a third positive test.

“It appears that the employees contracted COVID-19 outside of work,” she wrote in an email.

To date, over 80 individuals have been tested, with no additional positives outside of the reported three. In addition, Bassett has postponed some elective procedures as an added precaution while the contact tracing and follow-up testing continue.

“These latest cases of the coronavirus serve as a reminder to all of us to continue to follow the well-established precautionary measures to protect against COVID-19 and help prevent the spread of this virus,” wrote Huxtable-Hooker.

Individuals in Bassett’s service region who believe they may have symptoms of COVID-19 – including cough, fever, chills, muscle aches, shortness of breath, runny nose, diarrhea, severe headache, or loss of taste/smell – should call Bassett Healthcare Network’s COVID-19 hotline at 607-547-5555 to be screened and, if appropriate, tested for the virus.