Citing continued spread of COVID-19, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections said Thursday that visitation is suspended at all state correctional facilities.
"This unfortunate, albeit necessary, action quells a potential source for viral infection and spread," the agency said in a statement.
"Early in the pandemic, ODOC suspended visitation as part of a comprehensive plan to keep inmates and staff insulated from the virus," the statement continued. "Understanding the importance of inmates’ contact with family, the agency initiated a scaled-back visitation model this summer when infections decreased across the state. However, ODOC recently declared numerous facilities 'hot spots' for COVID-19, once again necessitating the suspension of visitation."
As of Wednesday, the department was reporting a cumulative total of 3,634 known COVID-19 infections among inmates, with a total of ten deaths either conclusively or possibly due to the coronavirus. Three staff members have also died, possibly from the virus, according to DOC. More than 300 staff members have been reported infected throughout the pandemic, though that number is likely not an accurate reflection of spread in staff because testing was not required for DOC workers until recently.
