Pa. Health Department to require universal coronavirus testing at nursing homes

Universal testing for the novel coronavirus is now required at all Pennsylvania nursing homes, according to an order issued Monday by Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine.

The order requires nursing homes to test all residents and staff for the coronavirus by July 24.

“Our goal with implementing this testing in nursing homes is to rapidly detect asymptomatic positive residents, manage their care and prevent further transmission of covid-19,” Levine said during a press briefing Monday.

The state first issued guidance related to universal testing in long-term care facilities in May, but it was not required by an order.

Since then, 75 long-term care facilities completed widespread testing, Levine said.

There are more than 700 nursing homes across the state, according to information posted to the Pennsylvania Department of Health website.

“We are very confident in our ability to do this testing now,” Levine said. “That is why we started to push it out in May. If you had talked to us in April, we did not have the testing capacity to be able to do this widespread testing in the long-term care living facilities, but we certainly do now.”

Facilities are expected to carry out testing on their own but can contact the state for support if needed, Levine said.

Medicare recipients will have their testing covered by their current plans.

“We will ensure that it happens by July 24,” Levine said. “We’re going to make every effort to make that happen.”

Updated guidance issued to long-term care facilities other than nursing homes recommends — but does not require — facility-wide testing when a new case is detected.

The guidance also recommends weekly testing of all residents and staff through at least 14 days since the most recent case was detected.

There have been 75,943 cases of the coronavirus in Pennsylvania, and 5,953 people have died, state health department data updated Monday show.

Cases related to nursing and personal care homes account for 25% of the state’s cases and about 69% of the reported deaths.

There have been 18,974 covid-19 cases have been reported at 615 nursing and personal care homes in 45 counties. There are 16,167 resident cases and 2,807 employee cases. Close to 4,100 residents have died from the virus.

More than 5,700 of the total cases are in health care workers.

Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center in Beaver County leads the state in the number of cases and deaths. The facility, which has a capacity of 589 beds, has had 331 cases of the coronavirus and 78 deaths, according to state data updated June 8.

The Gracedale Northampton County Home is also among the top three facilities in the state in terms of cases. The 688-bed facility has had 217 cases and 60 deaths.

Conestoga View, a 446-bed facility in Lancaster County, has had 96 cases and 74 deaths.