“They have her on medicine for the pneumonia, which she always gets at this time of the year. She has no fever. Her oxygen level is fine. She’s a little bit more tired but I think it’s just because she’s bored,” said her daughter, who asked to be anonymous so the nursing home would not retaliate against her mother.

The illness generally resolves in two weeks or less. That means her mother is about halfway through.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that it could get worse. The virus spreads rapidly in tight spaces, and the beds in the rooms on the third floor are not 6 feet apart. Roommates share a bathroom. Health care workers go in and out of each room.

The nursing home did not accept any new residents who were already positive with coronavirus. The current residents also have not been allowed to leave the nursing home for more than a month. That means there is only one source of the virus: It was brought in with a worker.

Nursing homes are trying to combat more infections by taking each worker’s temperature at the start of their shift and sending home anyone with a fever or respiratory symptoms. But people can be asymptomatic for days, and medical officials now believe they may be able to spread the virus during that time.