Washington University Announces Four Positive Cases of COVID-19

In a letter to the Washington University community on Wednesday, March 18, Chancellor Andrew D. Martin announced four cases of the coronavirus. Here’s his letter in its entirety:

“Dear Washington University Community,

I’m writing to you this afternoon with news I hoped I wouldn’t have to share. However, I’ve learned within the past 24 hours that four members of our university community have tested positive for COVID-19.

Without sharing many details, to protect the privacy of our community
members, I can tell you that two of the individuals who have tested positive
are physicians at the School of Medicine. These physicians are not currently
working with patients and are quarantined. We’re working as diligently
and quickly as possible with public health officials who are focused on
identifying and communicating with anyone who may have had contact
with the physicians.

The other two cases are undergraduate students who had been
participating in a study abroad program in Denmark. We have been advised
that they also tested positive for COVID-19. Both students are in quarantine
out-of-state, and are receiving care. They did not return to campus before
traveling to their current location.

While this news is certainly troubling, and we are concerned for our
employees and students, it is not entirely unexpected that we would have
cases confirmed in our community. This is something we’ve been preparing
for as the virus has continued to spread and as testing has become more
readily available, and we have plans in place for responding. We are
prepared to make necessary accommodations for our students and
employees impacted by COVID-19 and, of course, we have some of the best
physicians in the world to help manage patient care.

I want to reassure you that we are doing all we can to reduce the risk of
further spread of the virus within our community. With most students and
many employees living and working away from campus, we are continuing
to take all necessary precautions to keep our community safe.

We’ll share additional information as updates are available. The latest
updates will be posted on our COVID-19 information page. Please continue
to take care of yourselves during this difficult time.”

Sincerely,
Andrew D. Martin
Chancellor