Nursing Homes Investigation by House COVID-19 Committee

The House subcommittee launches investigation into CMS’ (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) handling of the COVID-19 crisis in nursing homes.

The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis sent letters to five largest for-profit nursing home companies and to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services seeking documents and information regarding CMS’s actions to protect our seniors in nursing homes.

“The Subcommittee is concerned that lax oversight by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the federal government’s failure to provide testing supplies and personal protective equipment to nursing homes and long-term care facilities may have contributed to the spread of the coronavirus and the deaths of more than 40,000 Americans in these facilities,” Rep. James Clyborn wrote in a statement.

“Over one-third of the nation’s more than 115,000 coronavirus deaths have been among residents or employees of nursing homes and long-term care facilities, with one in five facilities reporting at least one death. Men and women in nursing homes have died from the coronavirus in every state except Hawaii. In many states, nursing home deaths represent a majority of all deaths from the coronavirus.”

“Deregulation and lax enforcement of infection control violations by CMS—both before and during the pandemic—may have contributed to the spread of the virus. At a June 11, 2020, briefing, health experts and affected Americans told the Select Subcommittee that many nursing homes do not have adequate testing, personal protective equipment, and infection control measures to protect vulnerable residents and workers. Briefers also warned that CMS’s failure to enforce infection control standards, relaxation of inspection requirements, and limited data collection regarding outbreaks may have exacerbated the spread of the virus in nursing homes.”

Resources

USAToday – 40,600 deaths tied to US nursing homes
Select Cubcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis – Nursing Home Investigation Letter