- Associated Press - Wednesday, April 29, 2020

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Wednesday ordered universal testing for all residents and staff at nursing homes and assisted-living facilities, since nearly half of the state’s 929 deaths from the coronavirus have been connected to them.

The governor said the tests will be required, whether residents or staff show symptoms or not. He also said outbreaks at Maryland nursing homes account for about 19% of all total cases of the virus in Maryland, where there have been more than 20,100 cases reported by the state as of Wednesday.

“With our expanded universal testing, we should expect to see the number of positive cases significantly rise among both nursing home residents and staff,” Hogan said.

Nursing homes will be prioritized based on an imminent outbreak or rising threat risk. Any staff members who test positive for the virus will be discharged into isolation, the governor said.

Hogan also announced he is forming teams of nurses and several aids to help supplement the strike teams that already have been focusing on helping nursing homes. Nursing homes will be required to cooperate with the strike teams, which also include National Guard members, as well as state and local health officials, Hogan said.

While the governor said the vast majority of nursing home operators are committed to quality care, he said the state is “increasingly concerned and quite frankly outraged” by a few operators who have not been complying with state law. As a result, Hogan named Col. Eric Allely, the state surgeon of the Maryland National Guard, to serve as a compliance officer to ensure nursing homes are complying with state law.

At a news conference at the Maryland State House, Hogan also gave an update on efforts to fix difficulties with the the state’s unemployment insurance website. He said a new website was launched on Friday, and more than 245,000 accounts have been activated. More than 100,000 new claims have been filed.

Still, he said the work was “simply not good enough.”

“The IT contractor who developed this site and the Department of Labor have fallen short of the high standard that we have set, and the people of Maryland deserve better, and the buck stops with me,” Hogan said, adding that the state will “do whatever it takes to get this straight so that every single Marylander gets every single penny of financial assistance that they deserve.”

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