San Francisco hospitals are now helping prisoners infected with COVID-19

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Some San Quentin prison inmates who’ve been infected with the coronavirus amid an outbreak that’s spiraled out of control at the historic prison has been sent to multiple Bay Area hospitals including in San Francisco, KPIX reports.

At least 25 inmates as of Saturday night had been taken to Bay Area hospitals according to KPIX, which identified San Francisco’s Saint Francis Hospital among three hospitals to which inmates were being treated for COVID-19 infections. Seton Medical Center in Daly City and Marin General are the others.

As of Saturday night 89, San Quentin staffers had also tested positive for the virus, the report said.

As of Monday morning, San Quentin had 1,015 reported coronavirus cases — nearly a third of its inmate population — according to an SFist report citing data from the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation website.

San Quentin had reported no coronavirus cases until the transfer of 121 inmates from the California Institution for Men in Chino in late May, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The CDCR reported 4,843 coronavirus cases since the outbreak began and 21 deaths as of Monday. The state’s prison system reports 2,572 active cases and 2,153 recoveries.

On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued clemency to 21 prisoners in an effect to address overcrowding as the COVID-19 outbreak continues to swell in prisons and jails throughout the state, The Guardian reports.

On Sunday, protesters held a demonstration outside San Quentin Prison calling for the release of inmates amid overcrowding during the pandemic, according to The Chronicle reports.