Dear Pitt Community,

As of Thursday, Feb. 18, the Pitt COVID-19 dashboard reflects the following:

The scope of our dashboard and these updates is limited to people who have been on a Pitt campus within the last 14 days.

On the Pittsburgh campus, it is notable that there were five positive cases in one day of surveillance testing. However, there were no positive cases in the next day of surveillance testing on the Pittsburgh campus this week, which is encouraging. Shortly after shelter in place lifted in the fall term, there was a slight increase in cases, so this week’s data are not unexpected. We are prepared to respond quickly and effectively with contact tracing and testing of close contacts.

The Greensburg campus has been approved to move from the Elevated Risk Posture to the Guarded Risk Posture. The change will take effect on Monday, February 22 at 7:00 a.m. In recommending this posture change to the Senior Leadership Team, the Healthcare Advisory Group noted that Westmoreland County’s incidence rate of 80/100,000 and its positive test rate of 5.2% are very encouraging. They noted that Pitt-Greensburg does not have any positive COVID-19 cases on campus, and no students are in quarantine or isolation. They also noted that the campus’ PPE stock is appropriate, compliance is excellent and there is capacity for contact tracing, isolation and testing.

» Please continue to wear a face covering (it should fit your face snugly), wash your hands, avoid crowds, minimize new contacts and keep your distance from others.

» Indoor dining is one of the highest-risk activities associated with the spread COVID-19. While Pitt has taken measures to ensure safe dining on campus, if you are eating with others, it’s safest to have a mask on when talking in addition to maintaining physical distance. If this is not realistic for you, please avoid dining indoors with people who are not members of your pod or household.

» Faculty and staff may order an unobserved self-collected PCR test through Quest. This testing is not for symptomatic individuals. This is for individuals who have been identified as a close contact; who work in an area on campus that has been identified as having a localized outbreak; or who have travelled or plan to travel for any reason. If you are ordering a test, you should be quarantining.  

» If you have not already completed the Pitt Vaccine Survey, please do so—regardless of your vaccination status or preferences. It is especially important for you to complete if you are patient-facing or have a medical condition that meets CDC criteria to be prioritized for a vaccine. The data is confidential and will not be shared broadly. Learn more in the FAQs.

» Pitt has not yet received its supply of vaccines but stands ready to vaccinate the university community as soon as we receive our supply. 

Thanks as always for your continued efforts to keep the community safe.

Sincerely,

COVID-19 Medical Response Office