LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health, there are 1,058 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported in Pennsylvania's 695 licensed nursing homes as of Thursday morning. That number does not include staff members or how many people in those homes have died because of COVID-19.
State and county leaders across the Commonwealth are taking steps that could save lives.
There are more than 545,000 people who call Lancaster County home. Of them, just under 100,000 are people ages 65 and older, according to the last census, many of whom live in long-term care facilities and are more at risk.
“We have really more nursing homes and retirement facilities in almost any other place in the state. and that's one reason that, you know, obviously since the beginning of this we've been very, very concerned,” said Josh Parsons, a Lancaster County Commissioner.
That includes Mennonite Home Communities, with more than 40 cases of COVID-19 - and 5 deaths in its facilities, and Pleasant View Communities reported its first death to name just two nursing facilities impacted.
“We know that we have nine nursing facilities that have reported a case,” added Parsons.
Commissioner Parsons says, right now, there is no way to tell what percentage of Lancaster County's 596 cases of COVID-19 are in nursing facilities. He says county leaders are urging the state to release where specifically deaths are occurring, for instance, the exact township or borough. Until then, the Lancaster County coroner is keeping track of deaths via this map.
“Most of the cases the coroner has dealt with are older people in Lancaster County and a number of them are coming from nursing facilities,” explained Parsons.
Parsons says any nursing homes that are experiencing a shortage of PPE in Lancaster County should contact the county's Emergency Management Agency, which is working to get staff the masks and gloves they need.
“Nursing homes and other term care living facilities remain of significant concern to us,” said Dr. Rachel Levine, secretary for Pennsylvania’s Department of Health.
The state's department of health is reporting 1058 cases in 168 long-term care facilities, including nursing homes and personal care homes. The department does not have a number of deaths in those facilities at this time. Officials say the department is pushing personal protective equipment to all of the state's 695 facilities - sending PPE to each one as of last Friday. It also signed a contract with ECRI, a nonprofit health services research organization, to help with the COVID-19 response in long-term care facilities.
“They will be providing consultative services, virtual consultative services to nursing homes to discuss infection control procedures and and education,” added Levine. “So we are watching the nursing home situation really really carefully, and we have already asked that great to do virtual consultations even today.”
“It’s imperative that the state do all that we can to protect all Pennsylvanians, but especially those most vulnerable to COVID-19, and so the Department of Health made the right decision to enlist experts in the field of infection control to help protect those in the state’s long-term care facilities,” said Governor Tom Wolf.
According to the state's website, "With decades of experience in assisting during outbreaks, ECRI will provide individualized infection control and prevention assistance to long-term care facilities in Pennsylvania. Staffers will be available over the phone for 12 hours a day on weekdays and will coordinate with the Department Operations Center, currently providing support to those working in coronavirus response. ECRI will also help the department evaluate PPE and research different ways to maximize available resources."
If a nursing home worker believes that their management is not doing enough to protect staff or residents, they can file a complaint with the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Complaints can be filed in a number of ways, and the department investigates all complaints: https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/facilities/nursing%20homes/Pages/Nursing%20Homes.aspx
We asked Nate Wardle, press secretary for the Department of Health, several questions related to nursing homes. He sent FOX43 a lengthy response:
"There are just under 700 licensed nursing homes in Pennsylvania (695 to be exact).
We are working to ensure we have the most accurate data on cases in nursing homes, and will provide that when we do. What we can say is that as of today, there are 1058 cases in 168 long-term care facilities, which includes nursing homes and personal care homes. I do not have a number on the number of deaths at this time.
There is no requirement from either CMS or the department that nursing homes or hospitals are required to inform employees of confirmed cases, but we do expect facilities to take steps to protect the health and safety of residents and share information with those who may be affected.
It is important to realize that COVID-19 is a very difficult situation for our nursing homes. When an infectious disease occurs in a congregate care facility, there are significant concerns as to how quickly it can spread among both residents and employees.
The department is working with our long-term care facilities to assist them, particularly those with outbreaks and with significant areas of concern, which includes staffing issues. We have been working to push personal protective equipment to all of our long-term care facilities in Pennsylvania and sent that equipment to all facilities as of last Friday.
There has been guidance shared with all nursing home facilities in Pennsylvania to assist them with COVID-19. In addition, we are sharing all of our COVID-19 related materials with them.
Individuals who are in congregate care settings, such as nursing homes and the workers taking care of them, are among those prioritized by the department and many testing locations."