Two Mercy Hospital employees test positive for coronavirus

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Two Mercy Hospital Springfield employees have tested positive for the coronavirus after traveling out of state in the last two weeks.

Both people are currently staying home, and hospital leadership will be in touch with co-workers that may have been at risk to exposure due to close contact with them, according to a statement from Mercy.

Mercy spokeswoman Sonya Kullmann did not immediately respond to a question about whether those employees worked directly with patients.

"As COVID-19 becomes more prevalent in the community, it is not entirely unexpected that we would have cases confirmed in caregivers," the statement says. "Patient and co-worker safety is our top priority."

Kullman wrote in an email that Mercy employees impacted by the virus are receiving up to two weeks additional paid time off if they get sick during the pandemic.

Employees are also screened daily for symptoms, including fever. If they exhibit symptoms, they will be tested, she wrote.

The confirmation Monday came as Greene County was reporting 46 cases of coronavirus. Fourteen of those people required hospitalization, and four who were residents of an assisted living facility have died.

Statewide, more than 900 people are confirmed to have the disease, and 12 people had died.