Feds’ nursing home data only part of the story

Claiming a new transparency, the nation’s top nursing home regulator on Friday reported data on how many patients have died from COVID-19 or caught the virus.

But the numbers at best paint half the picture and are far less accurate than already available state figures.

“In an effort to be transparent, CMS made the data collected by the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) public as quickly as possible, balancing transparency and speed against the potential of initial data errors,” the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said in a statement.

The CMS numbers show that just under 4,933 Connecticut nursing home patients have died or become infected with the coronavirus.

Those numbers are way below the state’s count, which places the toll at over 11,000 patients.

Shady Knoll in Seymour, for example, is listed in the federal database as having reported 17 cases of COVID-19 and three deaths. Meanwhile, state data released this week has the death count at that nursing home at 41 and the number of cases at 86.

Connecticut has been reporting nursing home numbers for months, releasing updated data every week. The most recent tally places the number of infected nursing home patients at 8,517 and the number who died or are believed to have died from COVID at 2,542.

The difference in accounting revolves around a May 8 order by CMS requiring weekly reporting by all nursing homes.

“Nursing homes are required to submit this data via the CDC’s National Health Safety Network COVID-19 Long Term Care Facility Module at least once every seven calendar days,” CMS said in its order. “Failure to report can result in an enforcement action.”

Nursing homes have been battling the coronavirus since at least March. April was a particularly difficult month as deaths and infections spiked.

Connecticut nursing home deaths now account for about 60 percent of all COVID deaths in the state.

CMS acknowledged it only “recently implemented an unprecedented requirement” that nursing homes report COVID related deaths and infections to the CDC.

“Nursing homes are always welcome to exceed CMS’ regulatory requirement, and CMS urges patients, residents, families and caregivers to ask their nursing home if this information is available and if it is not available, why not,” CMS said.

Chris O'Meara / Associated Press Vice President Mike Pence, second from right, Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, second from left, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, left, deliver personal protective equipment to a nursing home on May 20 in Orlando, Fla., as part of the initiative to deliver PPE to more than 15,000 nursing homes across America.