Eight inmates at the Johnson County Jail tested positive for the coronavirus this past weekend.
Johnson County Sheriff Duane Burgess says three inmates at the county jail tested positive on April 9, and five more on April 10.
The sheriff says of the 340 inmates in the jail, all of the female inmates and three quarters of the male inmates agreed to take a rapid COVID-19 test.
“I think if you offer a test, a COVID test, you're going to have some numbers that are going to be positive. I'm sorry. I mean, it still stands true that a lot of folks are asymptomatic,” Burgess said.
The jail now has 400 doses of the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine that are being administered to inmates and staff.
“We're just trying to hold on to our hats right now and get our inmates and our staff done,” said Burgess.
The sheriff said he prefers the single shot dose because inmates will be fully vaccinated when they are released or transferred to another jail.
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