The Los Angeles Police Department, and those in Detroit have joined officers from the NYPD (New York Police Department) in being targeted by the COVID-19 coronavirus.
Nine members of the LAPD were reported to be infected this week, including two from the upper ranks. All are quarantined at home and recovering, according to a spokesperson for the department, who said they were instructed to “go home, and their workspaces [were] sanitized… The health and safety of our men and women continue to be our top priority and we will make every effort to test individuals experiencing symptoms.”
In Detroit, Michigan, more than 150 police officers were likewise self-quarantined as well. The Detroit police reported that its dispatcher has died from the virus.
In New York as well, police officers merit no special privileges, despite their status as those who daily lay their lives on the line to defend city residents.
NYPD officers cannot access COVID-19 tests unless they are showing active symptoms, according to a local source who spoke to JewishPress.com on condition of anonymity, and who pointed out that even when a police officer feels sick, he or she still must go through the same process as any other New York civilian – which could mean waiting for hours in a hospital waiting room, and even possibly being told after all that time that no more tests remain.
Police officers who are exposed daily to countless numbers of various different people and who could be infected without showing any symptoms might have no way to know – and might carry that infection home to their families – days or even weeks before showing symptoms, simply because not enough tests are available.
There was a 38 percent jump in the number of NYPD officers – 211 officers and civilian members of the force — who tested positive since Monday. According to Fox News, 2,774 NYPD employees are currently out sick; that’s 7.6 percent of the NYPD work force.