COVID-19 cases are spreading rapidly throughout Texas nursing homes, recent state figures show.
The number of nursing home residents in the state who have tested positive for the coronavirus has increased by more than 60% since July began, the Houston Chronicle reported. Additional figures revealed that as of the end of July 10, nearly 1,000 new residents have infections.
Overall, more than 1,400 residents have died from coronavirus in the state, while more than 11,100 cases have been reported.
“We had an opportunity to avoid what we’re experiencing right now,” Patty Ducayet, Texas’ long-term care ombudsman, told NBC News.
“We got this chance to see what other states did, what awful things they were experiencing, so we might be ahead of the crisis. Now I’m bracing for more deaths to come and more cases,” she added.
Last week, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) confirmed that the state would not be easing restrictions on non-essential visitors at long-term care facilities. A spokesperson added that the decision was the “most prudent” for the safety of residents.
Last week, Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News last week that nursing homes are seeing a recurrence of substantial transmission.
“This virus is continuing to be reintroduced to nursing homes and we need to shut that down,” he said.
