Location is disclosed, not death of all nursing homes

Columbus, Ohio (AP)-A coronavirus attacked a nursing home throughout Ohio, killing at least 45 people in connection with a pandemic. However, the totals are unknown, and the location of more outbreaks is not known, as many local health departments have nothing to say.

In addition to the inability to perform extensive testing in nursing homes, the lack of state-wide information has frustrated some operators. They claim that not knowing how widespread the virus was in nursing homes has hindered their response.

“We really need to know what we’re dealing with here,” said Peter Van Lunkl, president of the Ohio Health Care Association, which represents the state for-care homes.

Caregivers have been closed for nearly a month since Governor Mike DeWine banned all visitors and protected the virus-sensitive elderly. It does not stop it Spread over those facilities Staff and professional health workers are still coming and going.

Outbreaks at two nursing homes in Miami County, near Dayton, killed 12 people and left dozens more sick, while another 7 in nursing homes nearby in Dark County Has died. In the Youngstown area, 12 people died from the virus in nursing homes.

On Friday, Wayne County Health Authority announced that 10 residents and 10 employees of Worcester Nursing Home were coronavirus-positive, of which 5 died.

“Nursing homes are a hot spot for this potentially fatal illness,” said Nicholas Cascarelli, health director for Wayne County.

However, many other counties do not disclose information about nursing homes. Surprisingly earlier this week, Van Lankle announced that state health director Dr. Amy Acton announced that the virus had been found in 20 nursing homes in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County.

He said that if he did not know where the outbreak was taking place, the virus could spread if the nursing home hired someone or took the patient from one of those facilities.

Columbus women are mothers Hospitalized in nursing home Near the end of March, a positive reaction occurred a few days ago, ignoring the employees. Unmayfield told Columbus Dispatch that her mother had left the nursing home in less than a week and was immediately diagnosed with the virus, but it is unknown where the virus was transmitted.

According to the Ohio Department of Health, the state has entrusted the local health authorities to release such information and does not verify the name of the facility. I don’t want to reveal the identity of a person who tests positive. Public Relations Melanie Amart.

In Stark County, the policy is to cause deaths and not release cases, as public health officials monitor a series of cases in a single nursing home where four patients have died.

Another major concern of nursing homes is that testing is concentrated in hospitals. “We have made it very clear to the state that long-term care should get a higher priority. Now they are in the second place,” Van Runkle said.

The problem, according to the State Health Service, is that it is not enough to fully test everyone in a nursing home.

“The bane of my being is the fact that we can’t do this,” Acton said. “Everything is ready to do that. We can go mobile units, go to prisons, go to nursing homes. There are staff to do. “

Ohio and its county health departments are being tested where they are needed, even if they appear to be undersupplied more than in other states. Country.

In the event of a positive test at a nursing home, the state has established a “strike team” to assist the local health sector.

“ I see that nursing homes are struggling because they don’t have enough equipment, but just a little bit of the equipment we’re trying to keep is going to them, ” Acton said. . “When the hotspots happened, we were able to crush them to some extent. Over time, we’ll see how well we’re doing.”

As of Friday, nearly 5,900 people in Ohio were virus-positive and killed 231 people. This is according to a new federal guideline that allows for possible cases and deaths of possible COVID-19 infection without a positive test, which could indicate a possible COVID-19 infection. Positive tests show about 5,800 cases and 227 deaths in Ohio.

Eight prisons in Ohio are under full quarantine, with 36 inmates and 58 employees testing positive. One prison guard died. Mr Dewain said on Friday that all detainees at three prisons, the Marion Correction Facility, the Franklin Medical Center in Columbus, and the Pickaway Correction Facility in Central Ohio, will be inspected.

In other developments:

—Federal judge Michael Barrett has extended the ruling on March 30 for another two weeks, stating that the state’s order to ban selective surgery is unconstitutional if it prevents the practice of abortion.

— DeWine announces that new free state permits will allow food trucks at 86 freeway breaks in Ohio.

—The state has relaxed some rules on prescriptions prescribed for Medicaid recipients.

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John Shewer reported from Toledo.