LeadingAge Washington has shared with us that the REDi Healthcare Coalition, the Healthcare Alliance and several hospital systems are alerting that some long-term care (LTC) facilities are refusing to admit patients from the hospital if the patient is COVID positive or had a COVID exposure and has not quarantined for the full length of time prior to initiating discharge to LTC.
The Department of Health has stated that quarantine prior to discharge is not a requirement for LTC facilities to accept admissions. This is clear in pages 31-32 of the DOH’s Interim Recommendations for SARS-CoV-2 Infection Prevention and Control in Healthcare Settings. The full document is available online here.
As hospitals are at very high capacity right now, LeadingAge Washington and WSHA are both asking LTC providers to please follow DOH guidance to help relieve capacity strains and ensure patients in need of acute care can access needed treatment. (Taya Briley)
