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COVID-19 Among Workers in Meat and Poultry Processing Facilities ― 19 States, April 2020

2020; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Volume: 69; Issue: 18 Linguagem: Inglês

10.15585/mmwr.mm6918e3

1545-861X

Jonathan Dyal, Michael P. Grant, Kendra Broadwater, Adam Bjork, Michelle A. Waltenburg, John D. Gibbins, Christa Hale, Maggie Silver, Marc Fischer, Jonathan Steinberg, Colin Basler, Jesica R. Jacobs, Erin D. Kennedy, Suzanne Tomasi, Douglas Trout, Jennifer Hornsby‐Myers, Nadia Oussayef, Lisa Delaney, Ketki Patel, Varun Shetty, Kelly E. Kline, Betsy Schroeder, Rachel Herlihy, Jennifer House, Rachel H. Jervis, Joshua L. Clayton, Dustin Ortbahn, Connie Austin, Erica Berl, Zack Moore, Bryan Buss, Derry Stover, Ryan P. Westergaard, Ian W. Pray, Meghan DeBolt, Amy Person, Julie Gabel, Theresa Kittle, Pamela Hendren, Charles Rhea, Caroline Holsinger, John Dunn, George Turabelidze, Farah Ahmed, Siestke deFijter, Caitlin Pedati, Karyl T. Rattay, Erica E. Smith, Carolina Luna-Pinto, Laura A. Cooley, Sharon Saydah, Nykiconia Preacely, Ryan A. Maddox, Elizabeth A. Lundeen, Bradley Goodwin, Sandor E. Karpathy, Sean M. Griffing, Mary M. Jenkins, Garry Lowry, Rachel D. Schwarz, Jonathan S. Yoder, Georgina Peacock, Henry Walke, Dale A. Rose, Margaret A. Honein,

COVID-19 and Mental Health

Congregate work and residential locations are at increased risk for infectious disease transmission including respiratory illness outbreaks. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is primarily spread person to person through respiratory droplets. Nationwide, the meat and poultry processing industry, an essential component of the U.S. food infrastructure, employs approximately 500,000 persons, many of whom work in proximity to other workers (1). Because of reports of initial cases of COVID-19, in some meat processing facilities, states were asked to provide aggregated data concerning the number of meat and poultry processing facilities affected by COVID-19 and the number of workers with COVID-19 in these facilities, including COVID-19-related deaths. Qualitative data gathered by CDC during on-site and remote assessments were analyzed and summarized. During April 9-27, aggregate data on COVID-19 cases among 115 meat or poultry processing facilities in 19 states were reported to CDC. Among these facilities, COVID-19 was diagnosed in 4,913 (approximately 3%) workers, and 20 COVID-19-related deaths were reported. Facility barriers to effective prevention and control of COVID-19 included difficulty distancing workers at least 6 feet (2 meters) from one another (2) and in implementing COVID-19-specific disinfection guidelines.* Among workers, socioeconomic challenges might contribute to working while feeling ill, particularly if there are management practices such as bonuses that incentivize attendance. Methods to decrease transmission within the facility include worker symptom screening programs, policies to discourage working while experiencing symptoms compatible with COVID-19, and social distancing by workers. Source control measures (e.g., the use of cloth face covers) as well as increased disinfection of high-touch surfaces are also important means of preventing SARS-CoV-2 exposure. Mitigation efforts to reduce transmission in the community should also be considered. Many of these measures might also reduce asymptomatic and presymptomatic transmission (3). Implementation of these public health strategies will help protect workers from COVID-19 in this industry and assist in preserving the critical meat and poultry production infrastructure (4).