New Executive Orders from Governor Hogan
As we shared yesterday,
Governor Larry Hogan enacted an
emergency order
to protect residents and staff at Maryland nursing home facilities, and bolster the state’s mitigation and suppression efforts amid outbreaks of COVID-19. Effective immediately,
new directives
will require:
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT FOR STAFF.
All personnel who are in close contact with residents of nursing homes shall wear personal protective equipment (PPE), including a face mask, appropriate eye protection, gloves, and gown at all times while providing care.
NOTE: Please see more below on ordering PPE.
EXPEDITED TESTING FOR SYMPTOMATIC RESIDENTS.
All facilities must use the most expeditious means available for testing. Symptomatic residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities are among the patient groups prioritized by the state laboratory.
SEPARATE OBSERVATION AREAS.
All facilities must designate a unit of staff who are assigned to care for known or suspected COVID-19 residents; designate a room, unit, or floor of the nursing home as a separate observation. As we have been advising, many centers across the state have been preparing for this for two weeks.
PLACEMENT OF DISCHARGED PATIENTS.
MDH’s Office of Health Care Quality will assist acute care hospitals, if necessary, in discharging patients who require nursing-home level care.
RIGHT OF RETURN FOR RESIDENTS
. Nursing home residents admitted or seen at a hospital for COVID-19 must be allowed to return to the nursing home as long as the facility can follow the approved CDC recommendations for transmission-based precautions.
