The Department of Corrections said inmates throughout the state prison system will largely be confined to their cells to keep the virus from spreading after an inmate at State Correctional Institution at Phoenix in Montgomery County tested positive for COVID-19.

“Quarantining the entire system is in the best interest of our employees and our inmates,” Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said in a news release.

Inmates will only be allowed out of their cells for video visits, phone calls and access to the law library.

The Corrections Department incarcerates nearly 44,600 inmates in 25 state prisons.

Meanwhile, the state Supreme Court was asked Monday to order the release of some inmates from county jails to help reduce the virus’s spread. The county jail system isn’t impacted by the Department of Corrections quarantine.

By Associated Press