City Reports Four New COVID-19 Cases in Past Week

Bloomington, Ind. - Two Bloomington Transit (BT) employees, one employee of the Department of Parks and Recreation (Parks), and one Bloomington Housing Authority (BHA) employee reported receiving positive results of COVID-19 viral tests over the last week. Details of each case are as follows:

• One BT employee began experiencing symptoms on Wednesday, August 18, receiving a positive result on Thursday, August 19.  The employee works in the maintenance division.  No close contacts were identified among the employee’s co-workers or the general public.  (Close contact is defined by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as someone who was within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from two days before illness onset--or, for asymptomatic clients, two days prior to positive specimen collection--until the time the patient is isolated.) 

• Another BT employee  began experiencing symptoms on Thursday, August 19, receiving a positive result on Tuesday, August 24.  The employee works in an administrative capacity.  No close contacts were identified among the employee’s co-workers or the general public. 

• A BHA employee began experiencing symptoms on Friday, August 20, receiving a positive result on Wednesday, August 25. No close contacts were identified among the employee’s co-workers or the general public.

• A Parks employee began experiencing symptoms on Sunday, August 22, receiving a positive result on Tuesday, August 24. Coworkers identified as close contacts were notified; no members of the public were exposed to the employee in the course of their work.

Thus far, 95 positive COVID-19 viral test results have been reported since the start of the pandemic by City workers, including those employed by the municipal corporations that operate the water utility (City of Bloomington Utilities), transit system (BT), and public housing (BHA).  Additionally, COVID-19 was listed among the causes of death of one City worker.

COVID-19 at the City of Bloomington (since March 2020):

• Sixteen total cases were reported during the eight months from March through October 2020.

• That monthly rate rose more than eight-fold in November, when 17 cases were reported within the single month, and rose another 29% in December (22 cases).  

• January 2021 saw the monthly rate decline 40% to 13 positive cases; February’s four employee cases represented a 69% decline from January’s monthly rate; and the three cases reported by employees in March marked a subsequent 25% decline. 

• The declining trend reversed in April when seven cases caused the monthly rate to rise 133% from the March level, but declined again by 57% in May, when three cases were reported.  

• Two cases were reported in June, marking a 33% decline in the monthly rate. Also in June, the City learned that COVID-19 was among the causes of death of one employee.

• Two cases were reported in July, matching June’s monthly rate.

• Thus far, six cases have been reported in August.

Data about COVID-19 cases among City employees, in the county, the state and the nation are presented at this online dashboard. Other City-related updates about the COVID-19 pandemic are assembled here.  

The City of Bloomington is committed to sharing information about how its operations and workforce are affected by this public health emergency, and will continue to provide weekly updates about confirmed cases among staff while protecting employees’ privacy.