Nursing homes need more than talk

Hearst Connecticut Media published an article on April 27 (“CT delegation calls for federal intervention on coronavirus-related nursing home crisis”), which included quotes from members of Connecticut’s U.S. Congressional delegation. Unfortunately information provided by Connecticut’s representatives was erroneous, and points to a complete lack of understanding of the vital role nursing homes play in the fight against COVID-19.

U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes states, “We can’t wait until these numbers are out of control, because based on what we know, these infections will explode. We know it is going to happen, so we need to get ahead of it by being proactive and preemptive.”

I am not certain where Rep. Hayes gets her information, because the COVID-19 virus has already exploded. Nor am I certain how she expects to be preemptive; we are battling an extremely contagious disease which disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable in our communities, namely the elderly with comorbidities. Yet our government continues to lag behind in their response — nursing homes have been scrambling for personal protective equipment, testing kits and supplies since this began in the first week of March. The time for Congress to be proactive has long since passed.

U.S. Rep. Jim Himes states, “Nursing homes are what brought COVID-19 to our national attention because of the experience in Seattle. One of the stories that will be told when this is over is we didn’t learn quickly enough how dangerous nursing homes are.” No, nursing homes did not bring us COVID-19. A visitor who had recently traveled abroad brought the virus to the nursing home in question, and Rep. Himes’ comment on nursing homes being “dangerous” leaves me nearly speechless.

First, we now understand how extremely vulnerable our senior population is to COVID-19, particularly older individuals who suffer with multiple and chronic illnesses. More importantly, when the presence of COVID-19 was first made known, all efforts were focused on getting personal protective equipment and supplies to hospitals and first responders, with no attention given to senior care and assisted living communities. If Rep. Hayes wanted to be “proactive and preemptive,’ this was the time to do it. However, Congress failed to include this health care sector in the planning process, to the point where nursing homes still have limited supplies of PPE. Our delegation members need to understand this.

Rep. Hayes also states that federal response must include new enforcement to compel nursing homes to employ more trained staff, to ensure that infection control requirements are met. Another gross lack of understanding — this is not an enforcement issue, but an issue of availability of testing and PPE. Second, Rep. Hayes should understand the federal government sets staffing limits by controlling nursing home costs and setting rates of payment well below current operating costs.

She also incorrectly assumes infection control requirements are not being met, and assumes this has helped cause the pandemic to spread. This is an insult to professional clinicians and caregivers who provide care, the ones who serve as surrogate family members, who keep residents content and who sacrifice their own health to treat those infected. They are heroes.

Another member of our Congressional delegation, Rep. John Larson, stated, “This virus is attacking our most vulnerable neighbors and that’s why we must do everything we can to protect them.” But it was our federal government that failed at the outset with the lack of proper planning, and by neglecting to include the full health care spectrum with funding and supplies. I can only imagine the difference it could have made had our government truly worked to get the right resources to our senior communities when the outbreak began.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro is correct when she states, “Those bombs are exploding, and federal guidance from our chief federal health agency is nowhere to be found,” and “They must take action immediately.” But Congress and the respective government agencies help no one if they play the blame game, rather than acknowledging they failed in providing the guidance and tools senior communities needed to fight this extraordinary battle.

Nursing homes play a vital role in the health care spectrum and are on the front lines of the war against COVID-19; they care for those who are most vulnerable to this virus and need the tools to carry on this fight. It is time for our state and federal leaders to truly support us as we fight for our residents every day.