Upper Chesapeake Restricts Visitors, Cancels Events

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Upper Chesapeake Health has canceled community health classes, programs and events as the number of confirmed cases of those with the new coronavirus in Maryland increases. As of Thursday morning, there were 12 cases in the state, including one in Harford County.

"Our priority is protecting the health and safety of our patients, visitors, staff and volunteers," Upper Chesapeake Health said in a statement Thursday.

In addition to canceling programs, Upper Chesapeake instituted temporary visitor restrictions.

These new visitor policies were introduced Wednesday:

• Visitors must check in at the front desk, where they will be asked whether they have a fever or feel sick, if they have traveled outside the country in the past 14 days and whether they have been in contact with someone who has COVID-19. They may be screened for flu-like symptoms such as fever, sore throat or cough.
• No visitors under 18 will be admitted unless they are parents of hospitalized children. This applies to urgent care facilities and ambulatory clinics and includes infants and siblings.
• Only one visitor/person is allowed to accompany someone to the hospital, clinic appointment or urgent care visit. In the case of inpatient visits, only one visitor is allowed in the building per person at a time. This includes the main entrance. An exception is for laboring mothers, in which case two adults are permitted.
• No visitors who have returned from international travel will be allowed unless they have been in the United States for 14 days without symptoms.
• Family members and friends cannot come in and wait in lobbies or common areas, including all parts of the hospital (e.g., lobby, waiting areas, common spaces, chapels, cafeteria, food court, bank or any other area within the hospital or medical center).
• Animal therapy programs are suspended. Service animals will be able to enter.

For patients under investigation for the new coronavirus, these restrictions are in place:

• One visitor limit.
• Visitor cannot be ill.
• The visitor cannot enter a patient's room. However, officials said there could be exceptions "for compassionate care reasons."