Windsor House reports coronavirus cases at four facilities
More than half of the current deaths from the coronavirus in the Mahoning Valley are residents from long-term care facilities.
Exactly one week ago 21 News pressed nursing homes to be more transparent about any confirmed cases.
The state of Ohio is requiring nursing homes to report if they have any confirmed cases to a resident's family within 24 hours of learning someone at their facility tests positive.
Windsor House Incorporated operates a dozen nursing homes, with the majority of its locations in the valley.
The company says four of its skilled nursing facilities are battling coronavirus outbreak, which can spread rapidly to its staff and residents.
Windsor House at Canfield, O'Brien Memorial Health Care Center, Masternick Memorial Health Care Center and St. Mary's Alzheimer's Center are all currently experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks according to Windsor House, Inc.
On Tuesday our news crew spotted a Serve-Pro truck in the parking lot.
In a statement, Windsor House is now asking "that the policy makers at the State of Ohio do not force nursing homes to take active COVID-19 patients discharged from hospitals in an effort to relieve hospitals from being over loaded with patients."
The facilities report that when one patient with coronavirus returns to their long term care facility from the hospital, it ends up resulting in 15 to 25 residents going to hospitals for treatment.
But if hospitals run out of room, where would those residents go? A local attorney says turning clients away might not be an option.
"I don't think a nursing home legally can say 'we're not going to take someone', I think we all have to work on this together," Dave Betras said, attorney with Betras, Kopp
and Harshman.
Betras says families need to reach out for legal assistance in cases like this. Of times nursing homes can file to emergency discharge a resident if they're a danger to staff or other residents, but it's not known if the coronavirus is legally considered a "danger" under that guideline.
21 News reached out to the Ohio Department of Health for clarity on that issues and is waiting to hear back.
Part of the plan to open the Covelli Centre field hospital was to house long term care patients who would otherwise take up space in hospitals.
Mercy Health says the field hospital is still just in the planning stages. The hospital system is waiting on the Ohio National Guard for direction on when to potentially move forward.
21 News reached out to Windsor House for comment on Tuesday and did not hear back.
