Confirmed COVID-19 cases among onsite workers at the Department of Energy’s nuclear-cleanup branch declined for the seven days ended Thursday after spiking in recent weeks, an agency spokesperson said.
There were 119 confirmed and active COVID cases at DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) worksites this week, down 52 from the 171 recorded the prior week, a spokesperson said in a Thursday email. Two weeks ago there were 135 cases at Environmental Management sites.
In March, DOE stopped recording COVID cases among telecommuting employees.
But two EM properties with local data suggesting rising COVID-19 infection risks, the Hanford Site in Washington state and the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, are reinstating some stricter masking and testing requirements.
While masks are still optional for employees at Hanford, some workers take a COVID-19 test when they come onsite, according to an employee health memo dated July 1. Tests may not be self administered.
The employees subject to weekly testing are generally unvaccinated federal employees and government support services contract workers, or those who have not attested to their vaccine status, said a DOE spokesperson Wednesday.
“If at any time during the week (when testing is required) the employee comes into the office or works onsite as part of their job duties, they must be tested sometime during the week,” according to the memo sent to federal employees.
The Community COVID-19 level in Benton and Franklin Counties, Wash., rose from low-to-medium starting the week of Monday June 26, according to DOE.
Meanwhile, managers at Los Alamos are calling for masks to again be worn for all indoor and close-proximity work. “Effective July 5, all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, must wear a face mask while indoors, working within six feet of others, or riding in a vehicle with others,” according to the laboratory’s COVID Hub website.
On June 30, the COVID-19 community level moved to high in Los Alamos County, “meaning the mask requirement went back into effect,” a DOE spokesperson for Los Alamos said in a Tuesday evening email.
