Raleigh Police Department confirms employee tested positive for coronavirus
The Raleigh Police Department confirmed Wednesday that one of its employees has tested positive for coronavirus.
Deputy chief Michael Galloway, in an April 7 memo sent out to the department, said the police officer works in the North District Station. The memo said the employee last worked March 20-22. It said a professional cleaning of the building was completed April 2 following the department’s notification on March 31.
The timing of the memo drew criticism Wednesday from Rick Armstrong, vice president of Teamsters Local 391, which represents the Raleigh Police Protective Association.
“There are a lot of concerns because the fact they waited so long really puts a lot of people at risk,” Armstrong said in an interview. “That is what’s paramount for us, the safety and health of our members and the police officers, and especially now over any other time.
“For such a simple task, for them to fail to do this, it’s disgraceful. To wait a week, it’s disgraceful. ... This chief failed to notify them properly. It’s disappointing and we hope it never happens again.”
John Midgette, executive director of the North Carolina Police Benevolent Association, said Wednesday his organization’s legal department was reviewing the matter.
“It appears the city may have violated established procedures currently in place per Federal and State authority,” Midgette said in an email. “Federal HIPAA laws recognize and affirm the disclosure of COVID-19 positive individuals in these limited circumstances and Section 12 of Governor Cooper’s March 10, 2020 Executive Order #116 authorizes public officials to identify COVID-19 positive individuals to prevent, control or investigate COVID-19.
“Further, the US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Civil Rights authorizes identification and disclosure when, among other potentially applicable situations, first responders may be at risk of Covid infection.”
The Raleigh City Police released a copy of the memo Wednesday at the request of the News & Observer.
“We understand that you may have questions and concerns, and we will update you as we move forward,” Galloway said in the memo. “We reiterate our commitment to the health and safety of our workforce.”
The memo detailed what precautions should be taken including being alert for symptoms; watching for fever, cough, or shortness of breath; taking your temperature if symptoms develop and practicing social distancing.
This story was originally published April 15, 2020 at 2:28 PM.
