Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Residents of a Large Homeless Shelter in Boston

Date of Review: June, 2020

Baggett TP, Keyes H, Sporn N, Gaeta JM. Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Residents of a Large Homeless Shelter in Boston [published online ahead of print, 2020 Apr 27]. JAMA. 2020;323(21):2191-2192. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.6887

Original research – cross-sectional study aimed at establishing prevalence of COVID-19 cases via screening of a large homeless shelter population in Boston. Universal SARS-CoV-2 PCR testing after the identification of a COVID-19 case cluster yielded a 36% positivity rate. The majority of individuals with newly identified infections had no symptoms and no fever at the time of diagnosis; authors recommend PCR testing of asymptomatic shelter residents if a symptomatic individual with COVID-19 is identified in the same shelter. —Memoona Hasnain, MD, PhD, NCEAS