State Inspects 13 Montco Nursing Homes In June: See Results

HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Department of Health has released its Nursing Home Inspection report for June. Surveyors inspected 269 nursing homes last month, including 238 complaint investigations during the COVID-19 pandemic, state officials said.

In Montgomery County, 13 surveys were conducted last month. You can see the results here.

Nursing homes in Pennsylvania have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. And while the number of long-term care facility deaths is decreasing, 4,803 residents of Pennsylvania nursing homes or personal care facilities have died from COVID-19. In total, 7,015 residents in the state have died.

New cases in long-term care facilities have increased over the past few weeks as facilities complete state-mandated universal testing to determine the prevalence of COVID-19. The majority of these new cases are individuals who were asymptomatic, according to the state.

“We know that congregate care settings, like nursing homes, have been challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Health Secretary Rachel Levine said. “That is why we remain committed to protecting the health and well-being of our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians by continuing to hold nursing home operators accountable, as necessary, to ensure they are providing safe care. If you see something at a nursing home that doesn’t seem right, we encourage you to speak up.”

The inspections, called surveys, include information on nursing home patient-care and building inspections. If a facility is cited for not following regulations during the survey, it must submit a plan of correction that includes what will be done to fix the issue and a completion date. The department will conduct a surprise follow-up inspection to ensure the issue is resolved.

Surveys are posted to the website 41 days after the survey is completed. You can view all of the surveys on this searchable database.

State health officials can issue sanctions on facilities in noncompliance. Sanctions include civil penalties, a ban on admissions, a license being revoked, or a facility being put on a provisional license. A provisional license can be renewed no more than three times. The department can return the facility to a regular license if it is satisfied that all issues have been corrected and it is warranted.

Full data on case information in nursing homes can be found on the state's COVID-19 nursing home page.

Complaints about nursing homes can be made anonymously by calling 1-800-254-5164, filling out the online complaint form, emailing c-ncomplai@pa.gov or sending the complaint in the mail to the department.

This article originally appeared on the Norristown Patch