Pennsylvania has been in Phase 2 of its vaccine rollout for weeks now, but while all residents in the commonwealth can now get a vaccine, some of Beaver County’s most vulnerable populations may still remain unprotected.
The state Department of Health’s April survey on COVID-19 vaccinations in skilled nursing facilities indicates that quite a few residents and staffers at area nursing homes were left unvaccinated last month after many staffers refused a vaccine, and, weeks later, may still be defenseless against the virus.
The survey followed the March completion of the Federal Pharmacy Partnership for Long-term Care Program (FPPLCP), which worked to get nursing home populations immunized by providing at least three vaccine clinics in all participating facilities, including those in Beaver County.
After more than a year of virtual visits and waving through windows, loved ones of those in local nursing homes have found their way back into residents’ arms.
In recent weeks, nursing homes throughout Beaver County started welcoming back visitors and allowing close contact with fully vaccinated residents, in response to changes in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) nursing home recommendations.
The new guidance advises, “responsible indoor visitation at all times and for all residents, regardless of vaccination status of the resident or visitor,” unless county positivity rates of COVID-19 move above 10%, less than 70% of residents in the facility are fully vaccinated, residents with visitors test positive for COVID-19 or residents with visitors are quarantining.