UPDATE, Aug. 27, 3:05 p.m. | Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health said it has removed two Greek houses, Kappa Alpha Theta and Phi Kappa Psi, from its quarantine list after determining members who tested positive do not live at the chapter house.
Those members are not allowed in the chapter houses until their individual quarantines are complete, LDCPH said.
Thursday afternoon, the health department added one house to its quarantine list: Pi Beta Phi.
The Greek houses currently under quarantine orders include:
- Pi Kappa Phi
- Phi Gamma Delta
- Kappa Kappa Gamma
- Gamma Phi Beta
- Delta Delta Delta
- Alpha Chi Omega
- Sigma Nu
- Beta Theta Pi
- Pi Beta Phi
PREVIOUS | Nine Greek community chapter houses at the University of Kansas have been placed in quarantine.
A tenth is in the process of being placed in quarantine.
Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health said in a news release that the following chapters are affected:
- Pi Kappa Phi
- Phi Gamma Delta
- Kappa Kappa Gamma
- Phi Kappa Psi
- Gamma Phi Beta
- Delta Delta Delta
- Alpha Chi Omega
- Sigma Nu
- Kappa Alpha Theta
- Beta Theta Pi
Douglas County’s Local Health Officer Dr. Thomas Marcellino said in the release that quarantine is “one of the most effective measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.”
“Even if you are asymptomatic, it is important to comply with this directive, especially to protect those in our community who are at high risk,” Marcellino said. “In cases where contacts are identified in Greek chapter houses, we consider them as living in a household. And household members are considered high risk.”
The orders apply to those living at the houses "deemed to be close contacts at risk of exposure," but does not include members who live off-site, according to the release.
"Individuals assigned to quarantine and monitor for symptoms for 14 days would be able to serve their quarantine at their permanent residence, if desired, but any requirement to do this would be an individual’s decision or chapter’s decision and not a public health requirement," the release stated.
As of Tuesday afternoon, KU had 222 positive COVID-19 results after conducting 19,452 entry test results. The university's overall positivity rate is 1.14%, while the Greek community's rate is 5.47%.
