Disaster 17 bodies crowded into tiny morgue found at New Jersey nursing home - 68 people linked to Andover, NJ nursing home have died in recent weeks, including two staff members.

Destacado
An anonymous tip led to the discovery of 17 bodies crowded into a four-person morgue at one of New Jersey’s largest nursing homes.

Police found the bodies this week at the Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center I and II in Sussex County, in northern New Jersey, Rep. Josh Gottheimer confirmed to NBC New York.


The discovery by Andover Police, who did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment on Thursday, was first reported by The New York Times.

“They were just overwhelmed by the amount of people who were expiring,” Eric C. Danielson, the town’s chief of police, told the Times.

Rep. Gottheimer said he was contacted by an administrator at the nursing home who was requesting more body bags just before the discovery of the bodies.

“She called and said, ‘We’re overwhelmed here,’” he said on a Skype call, adding the woman who called was sick herself and said “so many” staff members at the home were sick.

The 17 people discovered in the small morgue bring the number of deaths linked to the center up to 68, Gottheimer said. Twenty-six of those who died tested positive for COVID-19, and two staff members are among the deceased. 76 patients at the home are currently sick with the virus, as are 41 staff members, according to the Times.

Local officials told NBC New York that the nursing home said it was separating infected patients from healthy ones. The Andover facility could not be reached by NBC News on Thursday morning,

“Once one person in the home gets sick it spreads pretty quickly in nursing homes,” Rep. Gottheimer said. “We’re seeing this around the state.”

The Congressman said his office as well as state emergency services and the department of health are working to get the Andover facility what it needs, which he said is made difficult by “huge nursing shortages” across New Jersey. His office reached out to FEMA and the Secretary of Health and Human Services on Wednesday to see if federal help is available.

The discovery at the Andover home comes as 5,670 people have died from coronavirus at nursing homes in the U.S., according to an NBC News analysis. There are 3,466 long-term care facilities in 39 states with known coronavirus cases.

By Ben Kesslen
 
Presiona para expandir...
Shouldn't they have contacted the CDC or their states health department for assistance?

Sounds neglectful.
 
Slight powerlevel: this is one or two towns over from where I grew up, and it's always sad to see things like this to show up in your newsfeed. Apparently after talking to my parents, our governor has been refusing to provide the initial disbursement of stimulus funding to Sussex County and several other Republican-majority counties, to the point where the Freeholders sent a letter to Pence demanding action.
https://www.njherald.com/news/20200408/sussex-county-in-outcry-over-covid-19-funds-allocation
Local leaders are simmering over the bypassing of Sussex and Warren counties from more than $82 million of federal money allocated to New Jersey last week as part of the first round of funding released under the recently passed $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package, saying the explanation that it was due to a predetermined “formula” is unacceptable.

The omission, coming as numerous Sussex County businesses trying to avert layoffs have also run into obstacles applying for economic relief, prompted state Sen. Steve Oroho and Assembly members Parker Space and Hal Wirths, all R-24th Dist., to request an explanation from federal lawmakers.

“Our families and businesses in Sussex and Warren counties are suffering just as much as anyone in New Jersey,” the legislators said in a joint statement. “It’s very concerning, and frankly unacceptable, that the communities we represent were overlooked in the first round of federal funding. We urge New Jersey’s congressional delegation to find out why we were left out and ensure that our constituents’ needs are being treated equally.”

Two other counties in the state, Hunterdon and Salem, also were omitted from the first round of stimulus funding, which included a combination of community block grants and emergency assistance for various public infrastructure, housing and anti-homelessness programs.

Bergen County, which has emerged as the epicenter of New Jersey’s coronavirus crisis, received $8.3 million, more than any other county in the state, according to an announcement of the awards put out last Friday by Democratic U.S. Senators Cory Booker and Robert Menendez. Although Sussex and Warren counties significantly trail Bergen County in the percentage of those infected, local leaders note that the impact here has still been significant.

Sussex County Freeholder Director Sylvia Petillo, in a statement, said “If the events of this (past) weekend are any sign of the challenges the county must endure in the future, it begs the question, ‘How many other roadblocks will be placed in our way preventing rural communities like Sussex County from receiving their fair allocation of the coronavirus stimulus bill?’”

“Every county in our state has been affected by this extraordinary health crisis and every county should have received a direct grant,” Petillo said. “A formula that favors 17 counties and ignores the needs of the other four is unacceptable.”

In response to the concerns, Congresspeople Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., and Mikie Sherrill, D-11th Dist., both said that the money announced last week was part of a specific allocation within the coronavirus stimulus bill that represents a small share of overall funding coming the region’s way.

Included in the overall funding, they said, will be minimum direct payments of $1,200 for individuals plus an additional $500 per child for most lower and middle-income earners. The funding also provides enhanced jobless benefits that will keep most unemployed people at 100% of their salary for 13 weeks, plus small business debt relief and incentives to keep workers on the payroll. Also included will be money for local and state efforts to combat the coronavirus and money for much-needed medical supplies and personal protective equipment for hospitals and first responders.

Gottheimer, who sent out a letter over the weekend seeking to reassure local mayors that help is on the way, reiterated the point in a statement Wednesday to the New Jersey Herald. “The bipartisan CARES Act rescue and relief package, which passed the House and President Trump signed into law last week, includes significant federal dollars and resources for residents and businesses in Warren and Sussex Counties. Both Sussex and Warren qualify for hundreds of millions of dollars in direct relief and support for residents and businesses — including dollars that are literally going out the door this week,” Gottheimer said.

Gottheimer, in a joint letter with state Sen. Steve Oroho, R-24th Dist., has nonetheless appealed to Gov. Phil Murphy to allocate additional discretionary funds received by the state from the federal stimulus bill to rural communities impacted by COVID-19. “We believe Sussex and Warren Counties meet that requirement and ask that you please immediately allocate the discretionary funding to these localities,” they wrote.


Gottheimer has since called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to establish a third federally funded drive-thru COVID-19 testing site in New Jersey for Sussex and Warren counties to supplement the two that opened recently in Bergen and Monmouth counties.

However, with the supply of test kits still unable to meet the demand and with other more populated regions of the state also clamoring for test sites, it is unclear what the chances are of a FEMA site opening in Sussex or Warren counties anytime soon. Against this backdrop, Gottheimer said he is attempting to secure funding for communities such as Warren County that have set up their own test sites or that are in the process of doing so.

Sherrill, in a statement, indicated she, too, has joined a bipartisan effort urging the governor as well as Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to ensure smaller counties and municipalities receive a fair share of coronavirus relief money and that the population threshold for approving such money be lowered if necessary. “Every community in our state has been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, and I will continue to fight to ensure that all our municipalities have the resources they need to not only fight the virus, but to make themselves whole after we get to the other side of this,” Sherrill said.

But Republican Freeholder Herb Yardley, a former county health officer who led the Sussex County Health Department before retiring from that job a few years ago, questioned if politics might have played a part in how the initial funds were allocated, noting that the four counties that were bypassed are all in “Republican areas.”

Yardley also criticized the formula used to determine the allocation as a “pre-pandemic, Obama-era formula.” The formula, which actually dates back to the Ford and Carter administrations and is still in use by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, prioritizes funding for counties with more than 500,000 people and cities of more than 50,000 people. Yardley’s concerns were echoed by Petillo, who questioned the decision to release the first round of stimulus funding through HUD, a decision that she said made it virtually impossible for Sussex County to qualify based on the traditional formulas used by HUD.

In a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, chairman of the White House’s coronavirus task force, Yardley appealed to the vice president to ensure Sussex County receives its fair share of help.

“Four of New Jersey’s 21 counties received no aid. Not a penny. Together those four counties have as many COVID-19 cases/deaths as New Mexico, and more than 12 entire states,” wrote Yardley.

In his letter, Yardley also noted that 70% of Sussex County residents work outside the county, some of whom commute to jobs in New York City. “New York City is the epicenter of this world pandemic. ... We are a hard-hit New York City commuter county. Our rural county is just as vulnerable to the devastation of this virus, and time is of the essence,” Yardley said.
Presiona para expandir...
 
I see this news on twitter and the first tweet has a bunch of replies complaining about white people for some reason lol
Screenshot_20200416-101351_Twitter.jpg
 
soy_king dijo:
Slight powerlevel: this is one or two towns over from where I grew up, and it's always sad to see things like this to show up in your newsfeed. Apparently after talking to my parents, our governor has been refusing to provide the initial disbursement of stimulus funding to Sussex County and several other Republican-majority counties, to the point where the Freeholders sent a letter to Pence demanding action.
https://www.njherald.com/news/20200408/sussex-county-in-outcry-over-covid-19-funds-allocation
Presiona para expandir...

That is actual criminal levels of behavior.
 
DavieJones714 dijo:
Rehad centers and nursing homes are nightmares on a good day. I am sure they are overfkngwhelmed with dead bodies. I don't understand the outrage here. It isn't like they found the 17 bodies in the kitchen freezer.
Presiona para expandir...
They want to make it sound like bodies are piling up like it's a fucking smallpox outbreak
 
DumbDude42 dijo:
being old

working in a nursing home during the pandemic must be an absolute nightmare. all the infection risk of a hospital with none of the medical equipment or safety measures.
Presiona para expandir...
I know a few people working in nursing homes and "independent living" retirement communities so I figure I'll shed some light on what its like there.
Most homes and communities are on full lock down, no guests allowed, food is brought to your room, and most gathering areas in the buildings are closed.
If a resident goes to the hospital for any reason they are put on a 2 week quarantine in their room.
All workers must have their temp taken at the door and must sign in/sign out.
All workers must wear masks at all times these are provided by the communities.
If an employee is suffering from any of the symptoms related to Corona, even if its minor they are expected to call off, if they don't they could face discipline.
If a worker tests positive for Corona then they and every other worker they've been in contact with is put in quarantine for over two weeks (one location is short like 4 cooks because one person tested positive.
People die in these communities all the time its not unheard of to lose a member once a week, now every time theres a passing theres some nervousness as to how they passed.
Its a big headache for everyone involved.

And this is only what I've been told, theres alot more new rules and other changes.
 
Honored guest dijo:
I know a few people working in nursing homes and "independent living" retirement communities so I figure I'll shed some light on what its like there.
Most homes and communities are on full lock down, no guests allowed, food is brought to your room, and most gathering areas in the buildings are closed.
If a resident goes to the hospital for any reason they are put on a 2 week quarantine in their room.
All workers must have their temp taken at the door and must sign in/sign out.
All workers must wear masks at all times these are provided by the communities.
If an employee is suffering from any of the symptoms related to Corona, even if its minor they are expected to call off, if they don't they could face discipline.
If a worker tests positive for Corona then they and every other worker they've been in contact with is put in quarantine for over two weeks (one location is short like 4 cooks because one person tested positive.
People die in these communities all the time its not unheard of to lose a member once a week, now every time theres a passing theres some nervousness as to how they passed.
Its a big headache for everyone involved.

And this is only what I've been told, theres alot more new rules and other changes.
Presiona para expandir...
The only problem with that is you're still dealing with facilities catering to lower-middle to working class groups, so they will lack requisite funding and will probably not be able to afford having staff stay home. I won't be surprised if these facilities will bend the rules and cut corners because they simply lack the capital necessary to implement such measures.
 
soy_king dijo:
The only problem with that is you're still dealing with facilities catering to lower-middle to working class groups, so they will lack requisite funding and will probably not be able to afford having staff stay home. I won't be surprised if these facilities will bend the rules and cut corners because they simply lack the capital necessary to implement such measures.
Presiona para expandir...

They also don't pay enough to convince professionals to risk their necks for them either. All of these medicare dependent nursing homes should have been handed over the national guard when this happened and the running of them moved from bankrupt state health budgets to the defense budget. But our fearless leaders are never good at thinking things through entirely. None of them, or any of their friends and family are in medicare dependent nursing homes. They have no frame of reference for how strapped they are on a good day. At least in this case the Administrators went for help from their congressman. I bet all their emails to the State health agency went unanswered, and nobody was picking up the phone when they called.
 
soy_king dijo:
Slight powerlevel: this is one or two towns over from where I grew up, and it's always sad to see things like this to show up in your newsfeed. Apparently after talking to my parents, our governor has been refusing to provide the initial disbursement of stimulus funding to Sussex County and several other Republican-majority counties, to the point where the Freeholders sent a letter to Pence demanding action.
https://www.njherald.com/news/20200408/sussex-county-in-outcry-over-covid-19-funds-allocation
Presiona para expandir...

new jersey has always been a shithole
 
soy_king dijo:
Slight powerlevel: this is one or two towns over from where I grew up, and it's always sad to see things like this to show up in your newsfeed. Apparently after talking to my parents, our governor has been refusing to provide the initial disbursement of stimulus funding to Sussex County and several other Republican-majority counties, to the point where the Freeholders sent a letter to Pence demanding action.
https://www.njherald.com/news/20200408/sussex-county-in-outcry-over-covid-19-funds-allocation
Presiona para expandir...
I'd be asking for a recall if this fails.
 
Honored guest dijo:
I know a few people working in nursing homes and "independent living" retirement communities so I figure I'll shed some light on what its like there.
Most homes and communities are on full lock down, no guests allowed, food is brought to your room, and most gathering areas in the buildings are closed.
If a resident goes to the hospital for any reason they are put on a 2 week quarantine in their room.
All workers must have their temp taken at the door and must sign in/sign out.
All workers must wear masks at all times these are provided by the communities.
If an employee is suffering from any of the symptoms related to Corona, even if its minor they are expected to call off, if they don't they could face discipline.
If a worker tests positive for Corona then they and every other worker they've been in contact with is put in quarantine for over two weeks (one location is short like 4 cooks because one person tested positive.
People die in these communities all the time its not unheard of to lose a member once a week, now every time theres a passing theres some nervousness as to how they passed.
Its a big headache for everyone involved.

And this is only what I've been told, theres alot more new rules and other changes.
Presiona para expandir...
Having a family member in one right now,the complete lockdown is in full mode.I havent been able to see My Mother in person for over a month in a half. I worry about what goes on at times. The rules change quite often due to CDC changes.
 
Destacado
Debes iniciar sesión o registrarte para responder aquí.
Atrás
Top Abajo