Two-thirds of region’s COVID-19 deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities – Inside NoVA

Nearly two-thirds of Northern Virginia's deaths due to COVID-19 have occurred in outbreaks at the region's long-term care facilities, according to an InsideNoVa analysis of Virginia Department of Health data released Friday.

At least 557 patients at the region's nursing homes and assisted living centers have died from the virus since the pandemic began in March, the analysis shows. The Northern Virginia region has reported 853 deaths altogether as of Thursday. The number of deaths at the long-term facilities is actually slightly higher than that because exact numbers for facilities with between one and four deaths was not reported in order to protect individuals' privacy. For analysis purposes, InsideNoVa assumed those facilities had one death apiece.

The number of cases at the region's facilities totals 3,181, or about 10.6 percent of the region's nearly 30,000 coronavirus cases. Cases at the facilities include both patients and staff, the health department said.

Among Northern Virginia's five health districts, Loudoun County has the highest percentage of its COVID-19 deaths at long-term care facilities, 76.8%. The lowest is 40.8% in the Prince William Health District, although that number is probably higher due to the number of facilities with suppressed data.

The Prince William district, which includes the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, also had the lowest percentage of its COVID-19 cases at long-term facilities, 4.9%. The highest percentage is 20.5% in Arlington.

State and local health departments had previously refused to release specific data about outbreaks in long-term care facilities, citing a section of state code. However, Gov. Ralph Northam ordered the data released Friday.

"Due to the widespread nature of this pandemic, it is now unlikely that releasing facility information would compromise anonymity or discourage facilities from participating in a public health investigation," a release from the governor's office said. The release also cited recently released data from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that has been inconsistent, creating public confusion.

The federal data released two weeks ago showed that the region had 241 deaths and 903 cases of COVID-19 at nursing homes, but the data did not include assisted-living facilities, which fall under different regulations, some information was incorrectly reported, and facilities were only required to report cases and deaths since May 1. Some facilities reported cumulative data since the pandemic began, however, causing more inconsistencies.

The data released by the state today includes outbreaks at both nursing homes and long-term care facilities and is cumulative based on reporting to the state health department. An outbreak is defined as two or more cases of the virus.

Eight facilities across the region have reported more than 20 deaths due to COVID-19, with Annandale Healthcare Center reporting the most, 51, followed by Leewood Healthcare Center in Fairfax with 35 and Birmingham Green in Manassas with 33.

Nine facilities reported more than 100 cases of the virus among patients and staff.

Earlier article on data release and Gov. Northam's announcement of additional aid for long-term care facilities.

SOURCE: Virginia Department of Health data released June 19, 2020.

* - Facility had between 1 and 4 outbreaks or deaths; exact number suppressed for privacy reasons.

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Two-thirds of region's COVID-19 deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities - Inside NoVA