Texas officials pass new requirements for nursing homes to limit spread of coronavirus
Texas nursing homes will be prohibited from allowing non-essential visitors into facilities due to coronavirus, Texas Health and Human Services announced Sunday.
At the direction of Gov. Greg Abbott, nursing facilities will need to bar normal visitation except in “certain compassionate care situations such as a resident’s end-of-life,” THHS said in a news release.
Nursing facilites were encouraged to use Facetime, Skype or other audio or video systems for residents to keep talking to family and friends. All staff and any visitors will need to undergo medical screening, THHS said.
“We understand how difficult these new restrictions will be for residents and their families and loved ones,” David Kostroun, HHS deputy executive commissioner for Regulatory Services, said in the news release. “First and foremost, we must all share the goal of protecting the people who are proving to be most vulnerable to this new virus.”
HHS staff will be conducting inspections at facilities with a history of infection control deficiencies in the past three years.
On Thursday, DFW nursing homes had mixed responses to COVID-19. Some facilities shut down visitation entirely, while others restricted the number of visitors permitted. Another facility had seemingly taken no extra precautions to limit visitors, alarming one Mansfield resident whose grandfather lives in the facility.
Legend Senior Living in Mansfield was not screening visitors or providing hand sanitizer at the door, Josh Tipton told the Star-Telegram Thursday. Legend Senior Living had not restricted visitor access to residents, according to an email sent out to family members of residents.
After the Star-Telegram published a story about the facility’s response to the virus, Legend Senior Living sent out a media statement that said they were subjecting all visitors to medical screening and limiting access to guests, allowing only “family, associates and essential healthcare providers.”
Coronavirus is particularly dangerous for people over 80 years old, according to the CDC.
In Washington state, at least 31 people have died from coronavirus, and nearly all the deaths are associated with one of five long-term care facilities, the Washington Post reported. At the Life Care Center of Kirkland, 26 people have died since Feb. 19.
This story was originally published March 15, 2020 at 4:06 PM.
