Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'MacGyver It': Nursing Home Directors Get Creative To Protect Vulnerable Residents
ABC News: As Nursing Homes Take A Heavy Toll Early, Companies Try To Erect Barriers To Coronavirus
As officials at the nation's nursing homes began to realize their facilities and elderly populations were deeply vulnerable targets for the spread of novel coronavirus, the medical director at one of the largest chains realized he needed a new playbook to take on an outbreak this dangerous. "We were determined to do our best to contain it," said Dr. Mark Gloth, chief medical officer for HCR ManorCare. "I said, 'Why can't we MacGyver it and put something together that will actually provide an additional level of support for our patients and employees?'" (Romero, Mosk and Freger, 3/27)
Philadelphia Inquirer: Nursing Homes Fear Accepting Patients Who May Have Coronavirus Exposure In Hospitals
Sidney Greenberger runs a New Jersey-based company that operates eight nursing homes in Pennsylvania and six in New Jersey. His buildings are filled with those most likely to die if infected with the coronavirus — the elderly and those with lots of chronic health problems. He finds the prospect “terrifying” and says the virus could make nursing homes a “death trap” for his residents. (Bulring, 3/27)
Boston Globe: Coronavirus Creeping Into Massachusetts Senior Sites
The coronavirus is creeping into senior housing in Massachusetts, despite urgent efforts to isolate residents and bar visitors. More than 20 cases have been confirmed in at least six senior living sites in the state, and two residents have died. The Jack Satter House in Revere has the largest known outbreak at senior facilities statewide, with seven residents testing positive for the virus, city officials reported Thursday. Five have been hospitalized, one is recovering, and one has died, though the cause of death has not been officially determined. (Weisman and Finucane, 3/26)
The New York Times: When Dementia Meets The Coronavirus Crisis
As the coronavirus advances, it is taking a particularly harsh toll on the many who are caring for a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia. According to a report by the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 16 million Americans are providing unpaid care for those with Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia. For them the virus is “really a double whammy,” said Lynn Friss Feinberg, a senior strategic policy adviser at AARP’s Public Policy Institute. “You’re worrying about your own health and that of your family member.” (Halpert, 3/26)
Reuters: U.S. Home Healthcare Industry Warns Of Possible 'Collapse'
Home healthcare providers, the lifelines to 12 million vulnerable Americans, are scrambling to decide how to serve patients who show symptoms of coronavirus — and how to ensure that the providers themselves neither catch nor spread it. (Berens, 3/26)
