Representatives for the two facilities did not respond to multiple requests for comment, but New Jersey nursing home leaders, elder advocates and family members shared similar concerns about the enormous impact of COVID-19 on an already unstable industry. Nursing homes were particularly hard hit by the coronavirus, which was often introduced by staff members working at multiple sites and spread quickly among the vulnerable population.
Nursing home industry reforms
More than half the state’s COVID-19 fatalities involved deaths in nursing homes last spring, prompting the state to hire a consultant whose report identified multiple weaknesses within industry operations and state oversight. That led to reforms heralded by elder advocates but often opposed by industry leaders.