The state of Connecticut is asking nursing homes to accept patients who have COVID-19 to help overburdened hospitals straining under the weight of new variants.
Hundreds of healthcare workers have been fired over not getting vaccinated, leading to severe staffing shortages and emergency room beds being placed in hallways, KTLA5 reported. Despite the fact nursing homes have been proven breeding grounds for deadly COVID-19, the Connecticut Department of Public Health issued the guideline on Thursday.
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“Hospitalized patients should be discharged from acute care whenever clinically indicated, regardless of COVID-19 status,” a state memo said.
Connecticut has had 2,968 total COVID-19 nursing home deaths. New York and New Jersey have had 8,996 and 5,332 nursing home deaths, respectively, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Nationwide, 143,327 nursing home residents and 2,259 staff members have died of COVID-19 through Dec. 26, 2021. CMS reported 754,538 infected residents despite an average vaccination rate of 87%.
The mixing of COVID-19 patients with healthy nursing home residents rocked former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo‘s administration, and he was almost prosecuted over his handling of the situation.
The memo also said patient discharges shouldn’t be delayed due to pending tests, as nursing homes and other care facilities “should now have quarantine policies in place based on COVID-19 vaccination status. PAC providers should be equipped to safely care for individuals with active COVID-19 who are ready for discharge from acute care.”
An investigation last year by the Washington Examiner revealed quarantine policies in medical care facilities don’t always mean the rules are followed and that facilities can become deathtraps.
Several disabled group home employees in New York revealed that sick and healthy patients slept in the same rooms, ate together, and were cared for by infected staff who were tricked into working at other short-staffed facilities. Workers told the Washington Examiner that despite quarantine policies, there was no way to keep the patients separated.
For now, Connecticut’s new guidelines do not require nursing homes to accept infected patients, Matthew Barrett, CEO of the Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities, told the Ct Mirror.
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“We don’t interpret it initially as in any way undermining a nursing home’s very appropriate authority and ability to refuse a hospital admission if the nursing home believes it is unable to meet the care needs of the resident due to staffing issues — and staffing issues are present all across the state and especially in Connecticut nursing homes,” Barrett said. “So we don’t view the memo that came out today or the guidance document from the Department of Public Health in any way, shape, or form undermining that clear authority.”
