COVID-19 Suspected or Confirmed in 19 Care Facilities in Florida

According to state officials, Coronavirus is suspected or confirmed in 19 long-term care facilities in Florida as of Wednesday, potentially exposing hundreds of the state’s most vulnerable people to the virus.

State officials are refusing to identify the facilities, citing privacy concerns. One person in a Broward County assisted living facility who tested positive for the virus died this week. Two others died at the facility, testing negative for the virus, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday.

Health Secretary Mary Mayhew announced that teams of officials will visit any facility with virus concerns. Still, she would not answer when asked whether everyone in those facilities had been tested.

Thousands of nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Florida face the worst-case scenario: a coronavirus outbreak in one of them.

The virus is far more fatal than the flu among older people and those with underlying medical conditions. The state has suspended all visitations for 30 days at nursing homes and long-term care facilities.

A Seattle-area nursing home had an early virus outbreak that resulted in at least 25 deaths.

The state requires masks for all workers in facilities with vulnerable populations, DeSantis said. Florida’s governor noted officials fear the deceased contracted the virus from an asymptomatic individual.

DeSantis announced collaboration with the University of Florida for more testing in The Villages, the largest retirement community.

Increasing the number of tests remains the top priority, DeSantis said. He said the state has enough kits for 600,000 tests, but lacks other necessary materials.

There are not enough reagents to conduct the tests, and the state is waiting on 500,000 swabs they ordered a week and a half ago. DeSantis identified the swabs as “probably the biggest supply issue we’re seeing.”

“A huge supply of swabs will let us ramp up the number of people that can be tested very, very quickly,” DeSantis said.

Neglect Amid a Pandemic: Protecting Loved Ones in Florida Care Facilities

The state is also awaiting an order of 150,000 personal protective equipment kits, which include coveralls, gowns, and goggles that, in many situations, are single-use only. DeSantis said he spoke to U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper about the shortages, a request he said other governors were making as well.

“This is probably the biggest rush to get medical supplies in the history of the United States,” DeSantis said.

The governor is still refusing to issue state-wide orders to close beaches and restaurants, however.

“I don’t want to shut every aspect of life down,” he said Wednesday. “I don’t think that would be effective.”

He said closing day care centers would be counterproductive, putting more pressure on parents already dealing with closed schools.

“I think that will cause huge problems throughout the state,” DeSantis said.

According to the Nursing Home Abuse Center, around 95 percent of nursing homes and assisted care facilities in the U.S. are understaffed. This is scary data as our Villages Nursing Home Neglect and Abuse Attorneys at Whittel & Melton know how an understaffed facility can easily lead to mistakes, injuries, and now the deaths of nursing home residents due to coronavirus dangers.

Symptoms of Coronavirus to Watch For

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said that older citizens carry the characteristics that put them at greater risk of illness and death related to the virus. The CDC has put together a list of symptoms and emergency warning signs of coronavirus to watch for:

• Fever
• Cough
• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
• Confusion or inability to arouse
• Discoloring (bluish) in the lips or face

If someone you love has suffered harm or contracted a serious infectious disease that is the result of neglect due to an understaffed workforce at their nursing home or assisted care facility, our Villages Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyers at Whittel & Melton are ready to help you. We strongly urge you to reach out to us as soon as possible so that we can provide you with a free nursing home negligence consultation. We are proud to help those in The Villages, Ocala, Bushnell, Tavares, Gainesville, Inverness, Brooksville, New Port Richey, Dade City, Tampa, Orlando and throughout the State of Florida.