Nursing homes can designate 'essential caregivers' to visit

Minnesota nursing home residents will be allowed limited visitors under new coronavirus guidance Friday from state health officials.

The change loosens restrictions in place for months and designed to stem the spread of COVID-19. Nearly 78 percent of Minnesota's 1,495 deaths from the virus have been in long-term care or assisted living facilities.

The visitors -- designated essential caregivers only -- will be required to wear protective equipment like masks and undergo a health screening before entering a facility, under the new guidelines. Their times may be limited and scheduled to control the number of people in facilities.

"Minnesota families have made great sacrifices to control the spread of COVID-19 in our long-term care facilities. I know this has been hard," Gov. Tim Walz said in a prepared statement. "But with this guidance, families will be able to reunite with their loved ones while continuing to protect the health of our elderly Minnesotans."

Care center staff will work with residents to designate an essential caregiver, which can be a family member, loved one, an outside caregiver or volunteer. Residents can designate more than one caregiver. The caregiver can visit for no more than three hours per day and facilities can establish time limits as needed.

State officials hope these new guidelines will help residents who have been significantly isolated during this time.

At a news briefing Friday, officials said the pandemic has been very difficult emotionally and mentally for residents of these facilities.

BEHAVIORAL CHANGES

"Due to the restrictions in visitation, and the separation of people, behaviors increase in the individual. People stop eating. People are not sleeping, people are not bathing, people are totally refusing. They feel they'd rather be leaving the Earth," said Cheryl Hennen, state ombudsman for long-term care at the Minnesota Board on Aging.

Hennen said the stricter regulations were needed, and that she's glad that these new guidelines can now be implemented.

Health officials also said the new guidelines need to be implemented very carefully and need to be followed. They do not want a new surge in infections that would require them to bring back the tougher restrictions.

The new policies do not mean that everyone can visit residents of these facilities, officials emphasized.

"We need to make sure we do this right, so that we are not closing the doors again. So, what we're trying to do is balance between what do these individuals need, yet protecting all of those who we have worked so hard to protect in our settings," said Patti Cullen, president and CEO of Care Providers of Minnesota.

Policies concerning visitation of long-term care facilities has been an ongoing discussion throughout the pandemic. Last month, Republican State Sen. Karin Housley of St. Mary's Point released a statement requesting that the state be more transparent about the number of cases and deaths in congregate care settings, and also look into modifying visitor restrictions.

This report contains information from the Associated Press.

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