Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Massachusetts Devotes $130M To Better Testing, Other Efforts In Nursing Homes To Contain Virus
Boston Globe: State To Send Another $130 Million In Emergency Aid To Long-Term Care Sites
Facing criticism for their slow response to the public health crisis in senior housing, state officials Monday ordered testing at all long-term care sites and announced an additional $130 million in new funding for Massachusetts nursing homes and rest homes struggling to contain the coronavirus. The new emergency funding, which will help facilities cover staffing costs and bankroll infection control measures and personal protective equipment, is an acknowledgement that long-term care sites have emerged as hot spots for COVID-19 in Massachusetts. (Weisman, 4/27)
State House News Service: For Nursing Homes Battling COVID-19, Baker Says State Will Deploy Emergency Team Of Nurses, Another $130 Million
At the start of an eighth week living under a state of emergency, Gov. Charlie Baker said Monday the data might be starting to show that the coronavirus's spread has "plateaued" as he committed an additional $130 million to support efforts to fight COVID-19 in nursing homes, where the toll of the pandemic has been particularly harsh. (Murphy, 4/27)
Boston Globe: Sixty-Seven Residents At The Soldiers’ Home In Holyoke Have Died From Coronavirus
In late March, when the first resident of the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke died from the coronavirus, 226 residents lived at the elder care facility. Just over a month later, nearly 30 percent of them have died in one of the nation’s deadliest outbreaks, and another 83 have tested positive. With 67 deaths linked to the coronavirus, the facility has a greater reported death toll than any other nursing home in New England, New York or New Jersey, or the long-term care facility in Kirkland, Wash., the initial epicenter of the US outbreak, according to a Globe review of cases. (Krueger, 4/27)
