Three more people have died at the Burlington nursing home that is the site of the largest outbreak of coronavirus in Vermont.
Health Commissioner Mark Levine said Monday afternoon that 14 patients and one staff member at the Burlington Health & Rehabilitation Center have so far tested positive for the virus. The facility now represents a fifth of Vermont’s 75 total reported cases. Four of the state’s five deaths have been associated with the home.
“As we’ve increased our test capacity, we are having more positive tests,” Levine said during a press conference Monday afternoon. “That should not be a surprise to anyone.”
Seven Days reported on Sunday that some patients, family members, and staffers of Burlington Health & Rehab have expressed concerns that the state and the home haven’t been able to contain the infection. One of those patients, Burlington resident and activist Albert Petrarca, who was recuperating there after foot surgery, urged state leaders to let some people leave the facility.
Levine said Monday that there “may be an opportunity in the very near future” for a “select group” of patients to be discharged, particularly those who were there for rehabilitation.
Levine repeatedly emphasized that the home has done everything it can to prevent further spread of the virus. Staff are checking the temperature of anyone who enters the building, he said, and the health department is working closely with the home to initiate additional proactive steps to “bolster” what it was “already doing.”
“We found no fault in their infection-control practices or procedures,” Levine said.
The health department is also in frequent contact with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss the situation, Levine said, most recently on a 9 p.m. phone call on Sunday. The health commissioner had previously said the state was asking the CDC to consider sending a team to Vermont. Monday, Levine said the feds have taken the position that the state has done everything that can be done.
“We continue to hear their guidance,” Levine said. “They continue to tell us that we have always been following their guidance and we’re doing a fine job.”
“They have no desire to come here,” he added, noting they are dealing with outbreaks, including ones in nursing facilities, nationwide.
As of Friday evening, more than a quarter of all U.S. coronavirus deaths involved eldercare home residents, according to a Washington Post analysis. Life Care Center of Kirkland in Washington State was hit first, and the virus has killed nearly a third of its 120 residents to date. Within a few weeks, at least 73 homes in 22 states had reported infections, the Post found.
The outbreaks at the Burlington home have further underscored the vulnerability of elderly people to the disease. State officials have consistently stressed this fact in public remarks urging people to take it upon themselves to prevent spreading the virus.
Levine and Gov. Phil Scott spoke briefly on Monday about ongoing efforts to encourage people to stay home.
Despite some lapses, Levine said, most Vermonters have taken social distancing calls to heart. “I do see remarkable change in a very, very short period of time, which I think is commendable,” he said.
But Scott warned that further restrictions are inevitable as the virus continues its spread. He said Vermonters should expect new measures “very, very soon,” likely in the next couple of days. And while the governor fell short of saying that he planned to require that people shelter in place, as some states have, he said he hoped to enact measures that ensure “those that can or should” stay home are doing so.
“It’s not a question any more of if,” Scott said of further restrictions. “It’s a question of when.”
Scott also highlighted one recent state effort to help hospitals prepare for an expected increase in patients due to the virus. The governor said he has directed a Vermont National Guard team to prepare the first of three possible sites to handle a surge in patients.
“While we hope we don’t have to use them, we must be prepared for this possibility,” Scott said.
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Sorry for these families, heartbreaking. But I have always found this facility to be sadly lacking .
So sorry for those who have lost loved ones. And, so sad that something wasn’t done sooner before the infection spread. Something should be done immediately at the rest of the nursing homes where staff are not wearing protective masks or gloves. Just testing staff for a fever is NOT enough to protect these vulnerable people since people can be asymptomatic and still contagious. Yes, I realize there is a shortage, but if I had a loved one at one of these homes I would be calling to make sure that they are doing everything possible to keep staff who are coming and going from infecting my loved one. And, the staff need to be protected as well!! A special thank you to all who are working in the health fields. We need you now more than ever and maybe when all of this is over there were be more appreciation for all you do!
I just read the article about what Stacey and Alfred said and I find that the home has been disgusting.. I believe the patients and the visitors before I will a billion dollar business! They are just interested in the money they rake in.. My sister was there two years ago when she had lung cancer and I never saw the nurses do anything to make her comfortable, they were just in a hurry to move her to respite house so they could get someone else in there! I don’t like that place at all!
It is not enough for Dr. Levine and Gov. Scott to pat themselves on the back for the “fine job” they are doing at Burlington Health & Rehab. Testing needs to be initiated for everyone at the facility immediately and those who are not infected (after a test) should be evacuated.
For Albert Petrarca and others who are facing a death sentence due to inadequate screening (taking temperatures?!), the reassurance that they may be moved “in the very near future” must seem worthless and terrifying.
It’s hard to trust the State Health Commissioner when there is direct evidence that Burlington Health and Rehab did NOT pursue appropriate infection control procedures. Either Levine is hiding the truth to protect Genesis, or the State and CDC standards for appropriate infection control is very very low.
What the family of Betty Labombard (first resident to die at BHR) witnessed challenges what the Health Commissioner reports, and they are speaking out. If we let the State and Genesis cover this up, no one in any senior residence is safe, ever.
Insinuating that Betty died because she was old DOES NOT do her justice. Nor does it excuse the way contagion was handled by the facility, allowing it to spread across two floors of the facility. Stop telling us Genesis/BHR is not at fault. They are!
Start testing everyone!! Absurd that they insist on not knowing who has it. Follow South Korea’s lead. They have had tremendous success with mass testing of all people!
“Genesis”, huh? That’s ironic.