Dr. Rudolph Dorsett. Joyce Valentine. Mercedes Quintero. Patricia Prillmayer.
Those are four of the names behind the death toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, four of the more than 36,000 Floridians so far claimed by the viral illness.
The four have something else in common: Each contracted COVID-19 as a resident at a nursing home in Polk County, family members say.
Those relatives are now suing the nursing homes, claiming that negligence allowed their loved ones to become infected with the virus that caused their deaths. But a recently enacted Florida law shielding long-term care facilities from liability makes it nearly impossible for such lawsuits to succeed, some legal experts and elder advocates say.
Among the local deaths, 400 victims or 36.8% have been residents or employees of long-term care facilities, the sixth-highest total in the state, according to the department’s records.
Five local facilities have been linked to at least 20 deaths: Highlands Lake Center, 31; Valencia Hills Health and Rehabilitation Center, 28; Winter Haven Health and Rehabilitation, 27; Oak Haven Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, 21; and Consulate Health Care of Winter Haven, 20.
The Department of Health listed 24 Polk facilities with at least one current infection among residents or employees, led by Wedgewood Healthcare Center in Lakeland with 12 cases among residents.
New COVID-19 cases in Polk
The state reported another 229 confirmed infections for Polk residents based on tests processed Tuesday. That raised the cumulative figure to 55,058, with all but 383 listed as Florida residents.