ROCKVILLE, Md. — Montgomery County has the second-highest number of coronavirus cases in the state of Maryland. Health officials say there are a few reasons for that.
County Health Officer Dr. Travis Gayles said Montgomery County's high number of nursing homes have partially contributed to the number of cases the county has seen.
However, Gayles added there is another factor also at play: crowded homes.
"We think that has probably contributed to more cases in this county, because we have a lot of large buildings where a lot of people live, and then even within individual units, you've got a lot of folks living in a small space," Gayles said.
He said the issue is something the health department has encountered while testing.
"With our ready responders now being able to go in and test people in their home settings, we've seen that happen where we've gone in and there have been 10 residents to a small place and we've tested four or five people positive," he said.
Last month, Montgomery County approved funding to provide hotel rooms for nurses and critical responders on the front lines of the coronavirus fight.
When asked today if the county's health department was considering a similar measure to isolate sick family members of densely populated homes, Gayles said the county was working to craft a solution.
"The team has been working to build a system to meet the needs of individuals where that is difficult to do," he said. "They are working on the criteria, and working on the networks to be able to provide a referral service for people to go to."