FLORIDA — At least one governor was taking a more casual approach to COVID-19 this holiday season.
In an effort to have nursing home residents reunite with loved ones, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said he was allowing residents to return to their facilities without being tested for the virus. Instead, they can return after being screened for COVID-19-like symptoms. If they fail the screening, they would be quarantined and isolated based on federal guidelines.
With rising cases in Florida communities and facilities, some advocates, such as Dave Bruns, a spokesman for AARP Florida, were voicing concern about the decision not to test residents upon their return to facilities.
As much as families love the idea of spending time together, “unless Florida long-term care facilities can offer reliable, rapid-result testing as residents return to elder-care facilities, this act of compassion could turn deadly dangerous as we move deeper into winter,” he told the Miami Herald.
From the December 2020 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
