More of Indiana’s COVID-19 deaths have been traced back to long-term care facilities. Health officials have determined that another 659 Hoosiers who died were long-term care residents, while one additional death was found to be a staff member.
During Wednesday’s press conference, State Health Commissioner Dr. Kris Box said 273 facilities had deaths that didn’t get reported properly. “Our primary mechanism for identifying whether a death occurred in a long-term care facility is to have those facilities submit information directly to us when a death occurs,” Box explained. “These deaths were not reported through this system, it appears.”
Box stressed that the deaths were already included in the state’s overall count but weren’t assigned to a long-term care facility. On top of that, she said the facilities had apparently been reporting COVID-19 cases. It was when health officials checked the list of deaths in the state against the list of cases in long-term care facilities when the discrepancy was found.
Box noted that facilities are also required to report deaths to the federal government as well as the state, and some cases were apparently only submitted to one but not the other. “Our long-term care residents have borne the heaviest burden of this pandemic, and it’s simply heartbreaking to see the percentage of these deaths that are attributable to these residents,” Box added. “COVID-19 preys on the vulnerable, and that is why we continue to focus on protecting those most at risk with this disease.”
Box said the Indiana Department of Health will reach out to facilities to see if there were any barriers that prevented them from reporting, and that they’ll continue working to make sure deaths are reported in a timely manner.
