VA Hudson Valley Health Care System Confirms Presumptive Positive COVID-19 Case

VA Hudson Valley Health Care System confirmed a patient with a presumptive positive case of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 was treated in one of its facilities on Tuesday, March 10 and released to isolate at home.

"The risk of transmission to other patients and staff remains low, as the Veteran is being cared for in isolation by staff who are specially trained on the latest Centers for Disease Control treatment guidelines and utilizing personal protective equipment and infection control techniques," VA Hudson Valley Health Care System Public Affairs Officer Cullen Lyons said in a statement emailed to the Hudson Valley Post on Tuesday.

The VA Hudson Valley Health Care System operates two facilities: Castle Point VA Medical Center in Wappingers Falls and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt VA Medical Center Campus in Montrose. Hudson Valley Post contacted the VA Hudson Valley Health Care System on Saturday after receiving information that a COVID-19 positive patient may have been treated at one of its facilities. Lyons declined to specify which facility treated the patient to protect patient privacy.

A presumptive positive test result for COVID-19 indicates a test in a health care facility that came back positive for the virus but has not yet been tested by a federal lab; a presumptive positive case is confirmed as a positive case when a federal lab issues its test results.

"VA Hudson Valley Health Care System was able to discharge the Veteran home based on clinical status with instructions for home isolation and self-care according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines," Lyons wrote. "After receiving the presumptive positive COVID-19 test results, VA Hudson Valley Health Care System is collaborating with the local health jurisdiction for monitoring."