New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday rolled out new regulations to protect nursing home residents amid the coronavirus pandemic, saying patients must test negative for COVID-19 before being readmitted.
"We're not just going to send a person who is positive to a nursing home after a hospital visit," Cuomo said during a news briefing.
"Period."
More than 5,300 New Yorkers living in nursing homes have died from the virus.
"This virus uses nursing homes," Cuomo said. "They are ground zero.
"It's a congregation of vulnerable people."
The announcement is a reversal from a March directive by the state's health department requiring nursing homes to accept recovering patients.
Cuomo also announced new protocols on testing inside the nursing homes.
"The rule is very simple," Cuomo said. "If a nursing home cannot provide the appropriate level of care for a person and provide the appropriate level of care for any reason, they must transfer the person out of the facility.
"If they can't find another facility, they can call the State Department of Health. All nursing home staff must now be tested twice a week. That's not just a temperature check. That is a diagnostic test."
New York has 333,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with 21,000-plus deaths.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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