ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Nursing homes in New York must immediately report how they’ve complied with regulations for resident care during the coronavirus, and non-compliant facilities could face hefty fines or lose their licenses, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday.
Cuomo said the state Department of Health and state Attorney General Letitia James’ office would be investigating to see how nursing homes are meeting regulations including alerting all residents and their family members of coronavirus cases and fatalities.
The state’s tally of deaths of nursing home residents rose to 2,902 and adult care facilities reported 638 deaths. That was 22 percent of the state death toll.
Nursing homes also must separate, isolate or transfer certain residents with COVID-19 and provide personal protective equipment to staff.
Cuomo said state health officials will inspect non-compliant facilities, which could have to submit an action plan and potentially face $10,000 fines per violation or lose their license.
A dozen nursing homes have reported at least 30 deaths. But such numbers are an undercount, with some nursing homes only reporting presumed or confirmed deaths.
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