AP Article: Nearly 26,000 COVID Deaths in Nursing Homes Spur Inspections
The Associated Press (AP) has published an article that was widely distributed in The New York Times (NYT) and other outlets, "Nearly 26,000 COVID Deaths in Nursing Homes Spur Inspections."
The article reports on partial state and national data of nursing home resident and staff COVID-19 cases and deaths released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alongside the data, CMS announced such measures as increasing fines for nursing homes failing to comply with longstanding infection control requirements.
“It’s widely agreed that prompt, methodical, ongoing testing of residents and staff is the key to making nursing homes safer,” but says that the nursing home industry notes that money is one of the main obstacles to widespread testing. "Some policy experts are hoping that the loss of life in nursing homes will lead state and national leaders to overhaul policies toward the industry, long a stepchild of the health care system."
"'This is not a nursing home problem; this is a health system problem,' said Terry Fulmer, president of The John A. Hartford Foundation, which works to improve care for older adults. 'Every system produces the outcome it is set up for. If you set up a system where the sickest and frailest people are in locations that are forgotten about and ignored, where the staff is paid less, why should that surprise anyone?'"
To go to the article in the AP, click here.
To go to the CMS data, click here.
To go to the CMS press release on enhanced enforcement actions, click here.
