Skilled nursing facility in Hayward could have more than 40 cases of COVID-19.

One Hayward facility has roughly 40 cases; a care center in Castro Valley has total of 21

In what appears to be the largest Alameda County coronavirus outbreak, a skilled nursing facility in Hayward could have more than 40 cases of COVID-19, while another facility in Castro Valley has almost two dozen confirmed cases across staff and residents.

The Hayward facility, called Gateway Care and Rehabilitation Center, has 21 positive cases among its 49 residents, said administrator Andre Aldridge. He was not immediately clear on how many staff members have tested positive, but said it was about 20, or more.

That could bring the number of positive cases above 40. He said the center is still awaiting test results, which are being conducted through both Kaiser and the Alameda County Public Health Department.

In Castro Valley, 12 staff members and nine patients at East Bay Post-Acute Center have tested positive. While staff are isolated at home and showing “mild symptoms,” one patient who tested positive is hospitalized in stable condition, according to a written statement from facility administrator Shane McCormack issued through a spokesman.

“The remaining patients were isolated from the other residents and staff upon showing symptoms,” he added. “We are working in close coordination with county health officials to monitor their progress.”

Alameda County health officials did not immediately respond to messages about the outbreak.

Christopher Warren, an epidemiologist at Stanford University, said that because people in nursing homes are older, they’re at higher risk of being vulnerable to COVID-19.

“They also often tend to have comorbid conditions, or other medical conditions that also increase their risk,” Warren said. “Things like diabetes or heart disease that are highly associated to having a real adverse or fatal outcome.”

Securing enough personal protective equipment, such as face masks and gloves, has also been a challenge for nursing home operators and staff, said Mehrdad Ayati, an adjunct professor of medicine at Stanford University who also has a medical practice called the Geriatric Concierge Center.

“In the nursing home industry, every organization has been panicking,” he said. “It’s a bad situation.”

Aldridge, of the Hayward facility, said his staff has been put on 12-hour shifts and are receiving help from nursing assistants from staffing agencies. Asked if the facility had enough face masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment to project those workers, he replied, “that’s our concern right now.”