PROVIDENCE – COVID-19 testing in Rhode Island’s nursing homes reflected a 4% positive rate at the end of last month, falling below a mark set by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for mandatory testing of all nursing home staff.
CMS announced on July 22 that it is poised to begin requiring that staff in facilities with a 5% or greater positivity rate undergo testing each week.
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But according to the American Health Care Association, while Rhode Island isn’t now subject to the requirement, the Ocean State’s nursing homes have a higher infection rate than much of the rest of New England.
Massachusetts, which has 376 nursing homes, has a 2.6% positivity rate; Connecticut’s 216 facilities have a 1.6% positivity rate; and New Hampshire reports a 2.3% positivity rate at its 74 homes. Maine and Vermont, with 93 and 35 nursing homes, respectively, have a 0.7% positivity rate for the virus.
Nationwide, 33 states reported a positivity rate of more than 5%.
Data released by CMS also shows that 15% of Rhode Island nursing homes have less than a one-week supply of N95 masks, 11% are without enough surgical masks to last a week and 18% do not have enough protective gowns to supply staff members for a week.
“The continued shortage of vital PPE [personal protective equipment] supplies for nursing homes across the U.S. is a major concern, especially for states with recent spikes in new COVID cases,” Mark Patkinson, CEO and president of the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living, said in a statement.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN contributing writer.
