This timeline entry follows up the Connecticut's COVID nursing home deaths data originally presented in this 31 January 2022 timeline entry.
That entry provided baseline data for COVID deaths among Connecticut's nursing home population, which the state's Department of Health reports every two weeks. Here is the state's data for nursing home residents in each report so far in 2022:
- Nursing Homes with COVID-19 (22 December 2021 - 4 January 2022)
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- Residents - Number of Confirmed Cases: 829
- Residents - Number of COVID-Related Deaths: 13
- Nursing Homes with COVID-19 (5 January 2022 - 18 January 2022)
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- Residents - Number of Confirmed Cases: 1,616
- Residents - Number of COVID-Related Deaths: 58
- Nursing Homes with COVID-19 (19 January 2022 - 1 February 2022)
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- Residents - Number of Confirmed Cases: 762
- Residents - Number of COVID-Related Deaths: 40
The data points to a reduced incidence of COVID cases and deaths during the most recently ended two week period. The number of deaths however is still well elevated over the levels that existed through the period ending on 5 January 2022.
That's significant because on 6 January 2022, the administration of Governor Ned Lamont issued guidance requesting nursing homes accept COVID-positive patients from Connecticut hospitals to free up their bed space. While similar to Andrew M. Cuomo's deadly 25 March 2020 directive, the Lamont adminstration's guidance differs in not forcing Connecticut's nursing homes to admit these potentially contagious patients into their facilities, which like New York, house those most at risk of death if exposed to the variants of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
Connecticut's COVID data indicates the state experienced a surge in both cases and COVID-related deaths in the period during which the Lamont administration's guidance has been in effect. The question we cannot yet answer is how many COVID-positive patients, if any, were transferred to Connecticut nursing homes where they may have contributed to the increase in cases and deaths that have been observed.
As yet, we haven't seen this newest data reported in any news outlet. We'll follow up with separate timeline entries to capture any related reporting.
