MOSES LAKE — Samaritan Hospital has sent off six coronavirus tests as of Monday morning, three of which have returned negative and three of which are still outstanding, said Executive Director of Development and Communication Gretchen Youngren in an interview Tuesday.

The hospital has been testing for patients since March 1. Two days later, it was announced that “several health care workers” at Samaritan Hospital involved in the care of the patient who may have had the COVID-19 virus had been quarantined.

The hospital said in a press release that the decision came at the direction of the Grant County Health District, which is in charge of coordinating the response of medical providers to the virus.

“Quarantining healthy individuals who are exposed to a contagious disease is standard protocol used to prevent the spread of disease and follows CDC guidance for COVID-19 prevention,” wrote Amber McCoy, environmental health specialist and spokesperson for the district, in a March 3 statement.

The district has not announced any quarantine measures since that incident.