The count does not include coronavirus cases or deaths in other long-term care facilities, such as group homes and assisted-living centers. The data was made public by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency that regulates nursing homes. “Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, nursing homes have experienced critical shortages of PPE, putting residents and workers alike at risk,” wrote Democratic Sens. Even with sufficient supplies, experts say, years of understaffing and cost-cutting have left nursing homes vulnerable to widespread infection outbreaks. More than 2,200 nursing homes reported earlier this month that they lacked an adequate number of nurses, and 2,600 reported a shortage of nursing aides, according to the CMS.

Source: Washington Post June 29, 2020 15:54 UTC