Cases of coronavirus in nursing homes have reached a record, due to the presence of the virus in Sunbelt states, according to a new report.
A federal knowledge investigation shows 9,715 cases of COVID-19 the week of July 26, the maximum recent knowledge available. The figures eclipsed the peak past of 9421 instances in the last week of May, according to the report of the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living.
Nearly 4 out of five coronavirus infections have occurred in services in Sunbelt states, where the total number of cases in nursing homes has nearly tripled since mid-June, according to the report.
The deaths continue with 1,706 COVID-19 deaths in the week ending July 26, an increase of 22% over the past week, but still well below the 3130 deaths reported in the last week of May.
Mark Parkinson, president and chief executive of the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living, said the spread of the network and the slowness of the virus’s identity delay in vulnerable homes remained persistent problems.
“Unfortunately, we took a step back,” Parkinson said.
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Parkinson said the buildup in some cases reflects the spread of the virus last month in the communities of the southern and western hot spots. Nursing homes would likely be vulnerable because citizens live in nearby neighborhoods and are more likely to have underlying medical situations that make them vulnerable to COVID-19 headaches or death.
“The public will have to make the decision that people’s lives in those buildings are important and then make the undeniable sacrifice of dressing in a mask,” he said. “That would solve a lot of those problems.”
The federal government has provided millions of dollars in emergency budgets for nursing homes and long-term care services to prevent infections, citizens and staff. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services He has announced that he will send point-of-care test devices to all retirement homes that deliver fast results.
The administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Seema Verma, said Thursday that she was “deeply concerned” about the increase in cases. and non-disclosure of COVID-19 data.
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Since March, CMS and states have conducted infection inspections at more than 15,000 retirement homes. Deficiencies in 180 homes in 22 states led to findings of “immediate danger,” which the firm describes as situations that caused or likely cause serious injury, injury, disability or death.
Parkinson said it’s not the right time to fine and close homes that are retiring to protect staff and residents.
“We don’t think the right technique is to impose fines and consequences when other people are in crisis,” Parkinson said. “We believe the right technique is to lend a hand and collaborate as we go through the crisis.”
Parkinson said the next few weeks will be very important in determining whether the outbreak of new cases will be followed by more deaths, delaying new cases. But he said drug remedies and the care of COVID patients in nursing homes have advanced since the early days of the pandemic. Dozens of Life Care Center citizens in Kirkland, Washington, died after the virus spread through space in February and March, the country’s first warning about the severity of the virus in such contexts.
Others that warrant the detection of known prior cases in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
Pennsylvania has demanded universal proof of nursing homes and citizens until the end of July and privacy centers until the end of August. Nursing homes knew many more cases, but the maximum cases were mild or no symptoms, said Dr. David Nace, a leading medical officer for nursing homes at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
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“Many of these cases would have gone unnoticed in another way,” Nace said.
Born said UPMC, which operates 35 health care services in western Pennsylvania, has aimed to isolate citizens who have tested the virus and restrict the spread in services.
“The argument has been to find the case early so that we can isolate and restrict the spread,” said Nace, a professor and geriatrics expert. “Maybe it’ll really work.”
Alltucker is on Twitter as @kalltucker or can be emailed to [email protected]