Governor pledges to expand testing of nursing home staffs
Gov. J.B. Pritzker pledged to expand testing of the staffs of nursing homes with known COVID-19 cases one day after his administration for the first time identified long-term care facilities hit by outbreaks.
The list released by the state Sunday sheds light on the scope of a devastating coronavirus crisis in nursing homes, with at least 1,860 cases linked to facilities in 21 Illinois counties.
The Illinois Department of Public Health will release the tallies once a week. Director Ngozi Ezike on Monday acknowledged a complex reporting system by local health departments and hospitals, deferring to individual facilities for “the most up-to-date data.”
“We're dealing with multiple reporting systems and a lot of players who have to put the information in, but we at IDPH are doing all that we can to make sure that we share all the information that we can while also being responsible and trying to protect individuals' privacy,” Ezike said.
IDPH officials previously cited privacy reasons in withholding the names of nursing homes with outbreaks. The data shows long-term care facilities have reported at least 286 deaths, accounting for about 21% of all COVID-19 fatalities in Illinois.
The percentage is even higher in some suburban areas. Of the 94 coronavirus deaths reported by the DuPage County Health Department, 60 are now associated with long-term care facilities — or 64%.
The state breakdown also sometimes conflicts with the tallies made public by the facilities themselves.
A Carol Stream senior living campus in the throes of an outbreak had 81 cases and 11 deaths, according to the state list.
But Covenant Living's Windsor Park has told families that 70 residents or employees have tested positive for the virus, including 15 residents who have died, since the first two cases surfaced March 26.
“The numbers reported over the weekend from the state of Illinois do not align with these totals because we have learned that they are also including any individuals with a symptom, but have not tested positive,” Covenant Living said in a statement.
In response, a state spokesperson noted the data “includes lab confirmed cases and cases meeting the CDC outbreak case definition, which includes those clinically compatible and linked to an outbreak.”
Pritzker, meanwhile, said Monday the state will boost testing at long-term care facilities.
“Where in prior weeks we've advised that staff be given pre-shift wellness checks, including taking temperatures, we will now be ramping up testing on all staff who work at these facilities — all staff — allowing us to determine who's coming in and out of an infected home, possibly asymptomatic and should instead be at home in isolation,” he said.
Nursing homes have requested increased testing capabilities for “many weeks,” said Pat Comstock, COVID response director for the Health Care Council of Illinois, a trade group representing more than skilled nursing facilities in Illinois.
Comstock said some nursing homes stopped testing residents for the virus after one resident tested positive, classifying others who showed symptoms as having a “COVID-like illness.”
“By only identifying suspected cases, it creates uncertainty in establishing an appropriate care plan and protecting staff,” Comstock said. “Uncertainty translates into inability to give families complete information. ... We understand families are terrified at the possibility of their loved ones contracting this virus.”
Members of the Health Care Council of Illinois encouraged development of the new online database about coronavirus cases in nursing homes and are working to follow new reporting guidelines to provide accurate updates, Comstock said.
“It's the right thing to do to share information about how the disease is ravaging our facilities,” she said.