Tenant has COVID but the heat is broken.

[Tristan Scott Zell]

I have a tenant who just got Covid and is quarantining inside the apartment. They notified me that also the thermostat is broken and they aren't able to set it to a reasonable temperature, this is not good since as the landlord I need to keep the heat at a certain temperature (Right now in Maine temps are in single digits). But it doesn't make sense to send anybody in there to fix it if the tenant has covid. What should I do? I am thinking about getting a space heater and giving it to them to use, but this is only a temporary fix. 

[Nathan Gesner]

You have a responsibility to keep the heat on, but it is out of your control if the Tenant is sick and unwilling to allow someone entrance to do the work. I would provide them space heaters, but I would not compensate them for the additional electricity.

You can call around to plumbers and you'll find one willing to do the work. Tenant could stay upstairs all night, plumber comes in with a mask and gloves, does the work in a space not actively occupied by the tenant, and the chances of them catching COVID from that interaction is almost nil. That same plumber is far more likely to catch COVID from someone in a public space or from a customer that was infected but unaware.