Sens. Casey, Toomey demand U.S. Health Secretary Azar take action to protect nursing homes
Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey are giving U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar until the end of the month to respond to their calls for urgent federal actions to protect residents of nursing homes during the pandemic.
The bipartisan pair of Pennsylvania lawmakers requested that the Trump administration’s top public health officials deploy more resources and staff to help specific nursing homes directly with testing, equipment and infection control programs, among other needs. They also want federal health officials to make the process of resolving problems more transparent.
By the end of July, federal data showed that 12% of nursing homes did not have a one-week supply of N95 masks, 9% didn’t have a week’s worth of surgical masks and 11% were without a week’s supply of gowns.
Casey, D-Scranton, and Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, joined four more senators in writing a letter dated Thursday requesting a Sept. 1 response from Azar, in hopes of getting their recommendations implemented by Dec. 1.
The letter asked for monthly infection control and covid-19 updates to be posted for the public on the “Nursing Home Compare” section of the CMS website.
“Further, in an effort to increase timely correction of deficiencies, we request CMS encourage states to provide real-time feedback to nursing facilities regarding their deficiencies,” the letter states. Copies were addressed to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert R. Redfield and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma.
The letter was signed by Sens. Casey, Toomey, Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.; James Lankford, R-Oklahoma; Bob Menendez, D-N.J.; and Ben Sasse, R-Neb.
They called for opening up all nursing home regulations to changes. They want input from the public and everyone affected by nursing homes on everything from isolation policies to how to go about resuming visitation. The letter asserted the need for better coordination with state agencies and improvements to “fill vital gaps in data collection.”
The senators call for detailed analyses of nursing homes with proportionally large outbreaks of covid-19.
Nearly 70% of Pennsylvanian’s covid-19 deaths linked to long-term care facilities, and new nursing home outbreaks are emerging in states with community spread, state and federal data show.
“It is important to understand what factors contribute to a covid-19 outbreak in a nursing home, what leads to outbreaks on a greater scale, and what strategies or factors help nursing homes best mitigate an outbreak, ” the letter states.
An initial CDC analysis suggested that increasing the capacity for efficient testing and improving infection control programs can slash the rate of new cases at nursing homes in half.
A call for coordination, targeting nursing homes
Casey and Toomey have teamed up prior to the pandemic on efforts to advance legislation aimed at improving the quality of care at chronically underperforming nursing homes, including those on a federal Special Focus Facility watch list.
“We appreciate your attention to our previous calls for increased transparency into facilities that are candidates for Special Focus Facility program, and we believe the circumstances facing nursing homes amid the pandemic require further attention and action,” their letter to Azar states. “Two steps we are encouraging are enhanced coordination between federal and state regulatory agencies, and targeted assistance to nursing homes.”
When Azar visited Beaver County in May, he pointed out that he wanted to be close to Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center, where at least 73 residents died of covid-19 and more than 300 residents and staff were infected, making it among the deadliest outbreaks in the nation. Brighton Rehab has been a candidate on the Special Focus Facility watch list for more than two years.
A Tribune-Review investigation into Brighton Rehab published Sunday recounted infection control and other problems and violations that happened during the pandemic as well as others that have persisted for years unchecked.
RELATED: U.S. Health Secretary says feds investigating Brighton nursing home coronavirus outbreak
“From the moment the threat of this virus materialized, the Trump Administration has placed a priority on protecting nursing home residents,” CMS Administrator Verma said last month. “We’re going to be targeting those nursing homes that are in hot spots and that also are experiencing significant case loads. … This is a war, and we are constantly evolving our strategy to address the situation on the ground.”
On Wednesday, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro told the Tribune-Review that his office has launched a criminal investigation into Brighton Rehab, saying he was “deeply troubled” by reports of poor conditions and practices at the nursing home in Beaver County, about 35 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. The office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Section also is looking into several other nursing homes around the state that have not yet been disclosed.
Last week, U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb called for a separate investigation into how the Pennsylvania Department of Health oversaw the Brighton Rehab facility during the coronavirus pandemic.
“There is an established legal process in place to ensure that all skilled nursing facilities, including Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center, are held accountable to provide safe patient care and living conditions,” the state health department said in response.
Any fines against the Brighton facility or other nursing homes statewide will be posted to the health department website as they move through the appeal and finalization process, which could take several months, the state spokesperson said.
The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), which represent more than 14,000 long-term care facilities nationwide, reports that new covid-19 cases are linked to community spread, pointing to new cases on the rise in July at places where rates had been dropping in June.
“With the recent major spikes of covid cases in many states across the country, we were very concerned this trend would lead to an increase in cases in nursing homes, and unfortunately it has,” said Mark Parkinson, CEO and president of AHCA/NCAL, said in a statement earlier this week. “This is especially troubling since many nursing homes and other long-term care facilities are still unable to acquire the personal protective equipment and testing they need to fully combat this virus.”
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