Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan signed an executive order Wednesday requiring all staff and residents of nursing homes to be tested for the coronavirus.
“We are no longer just playing defense,” Mr. Hogan said at the start of a briefing. “We are going on offense against this virus, attacking it from every angle, with everything we got.”
There are currently about 4,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus at 143 Maryland nursing homes, Mr. Hogan said.
He said these outbreaks account for 19% of the state’s total positive cases, and noted that 46% of the state’s deaths are nursing home residents.
Nursing home medical staff must evaluate residents daily, and the facilities have to develop a surge staffing plan to make up for dwindling staff availability due to the coronavirus, under the order.
Mr. Hogan said he is making available “bridge teams” to provide emergency staffing to nursing homes, as well.
The teams, which are ready to be deployed, will be made up of a registered nurse and five to seven aides, which is sufficient to care for up to 100 nursing home residents per shift.
• Sophie Kaplan can be reached at skaplan@washingtontimes.com.
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