Nursing Homes Account For Over 40% Of U.S. Coronavirus Deaths

Of the U.S.’s more than 116,000 Covid-19 deaths, over 50,000 died in nursing homes or other long-term care facilities, according to a Tuesday analysis by The Wall Street Journal, reaffirming concerns that the country’s oldest and most vulnerable have not been adequately protected during the pandemic.

KEY FACTS

The WSJ reported more than 250,000 residents and staffers at long-term care facilities contracted Covid-19, resulting in at least 50,919 deaths (the death toll is likely higher due to lags and differences in state reporting).

As for how the pandemic claimed so many from nursing homes, fingers are being pointed on both sides of the aisle.

Trump has sourced the issue to facilities with low federal ratings for infection control and some Democratic governors who required nursing homes to take recovering Covid-19 patients.

Democrats have criticized the Trump administration’s response while advocates for the elderly say the federal government hasn’t provided sufficient virus testing and protective gear to allow nursing homes to operate safely.

POLITICO reported Monday that only a little more than half of the nation’s nursing homes received inspections to make sure staff are following proper procedures to prevent coronavirus transmission, a lapse that critics say prevented states from identifying issues at a crucial time.

Key background

The Trump administration hit pause on annual nursing home inspections in March and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services instead tasked state agencies with inspecting facilities for adequate pandemic response practices. However, POLITICO reports that many states affected heavily by the virus chose to prioritize frontline health workers rather than inspectors, delaying in-person checks and leading nearly half of the country’s homes to remain unchecked for more than two months. “If you’re not going in, you’re essentially taking the providers’ word that they’re doing a good job,” said Richard Mollot, the executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition, which experts say led to oversights or lapses in appropriate pandemic care.

Key quote

“The lack of federal coordination certainly has impeded facilities’ ability to identify infected persons and to provide care,” Eric Carlson, an expert with the care advocacy group Justice in Aging, said to lawmakers. “That absence remains important as facilities are attempting to open up, which requires an extensive reliance on testing.”

Shocking number

A closely watched academic model from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation is forecasting more than 201,000 coronavirus deaths in the U.S. by October 1.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2020/06/16/nursing-homes-account-for-over-40-of-us-coronavirus-deaths/#54d56a44300b