PORTLAND, Ore. — Every resident and staff member at long-term care facilities across Oregon will be tested for COVID-19 starting June 24, state officials announced Monday.
Care centers in Oregon have been hot spots for coronavirus outbreaks and largely affect people who are most vulnerable to severe complications from the virus.
Nursing facilities account for about 50% of the outbreaks at long-term care facilities in Oregon, despite representing less than 20% of the total number of facilities, the office of Oregon Gov. Kate Brown reported last week.
The state on Monday unveiled its statewide testing plan for long-term facilities that have more than five residents. State officials said the plan will be implemented in two phases:
Phase 1 (June 24-Sept. 30)
- Every facility in the state — more than 680 with an estimated 31,000 residents and 29,000 staff members — will test each member of its staff and will offer testing to each resident.
- Facilities in Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, Yamhill, Marion and Polk counties will be prioritized because those counties account for the majority of outbreaks in long-term care facilities in the state.
- Testing will begin at facilities with memory care units first, followed by facilities without memory care.
- After testing at the facilities in the six counties listed above is complete, testing will begin in other counties.
Phase 2 (starting Oct. 1)
- Facilities will develop and implement plans on how they'll continue to monitor and test residents and staff.
- Staff will be required to be tested at least once per month.
- Plans must be approved by the Oregon Department of Human Services.
- Implementation must begin within 30 days of completion of the first round of testing.
- Plans must be provided in a "linguistically and culturally sensitive manner," the state says.
Staff are required to participate in the testing. Residents may decline a test, but if they're symptomatic and decline a test, they must be quarantined.
"We anticipate that comprehensive testing will help improve prevention efforts by providing us with more information on how the virus is spreading in long-term care facilities," said DHS Director Fariborz Pakseresht. "Completing the first round of tests statewide represents a significant undertaking. We appreciate the support we have received from long-term care facilities in partnering with us to take this important step forward."
Facilities must report testing results to local public health authorities and the DHS Office of Aging People with Disabilities.
To ensure privacy, the only information on the testing that will be released publicly will be aggregate data on cases and deaths at facilities with outbreaks.
Resources
- Oregon Long Term Care Facility Testing Plan: Full report
- Oregon Department of Human Services Information for Long Term Care Facilities: Includes lists of state-licensed long-term care facilities reporting COVID-19 cases or tests pending on suspected cases
- The most recent OHA COVID-19 Weekly Report, which includes cases at long-term care facilities
- Oregon Health Authority | COVID-19 Updates
- Oregon Department of Human Services COVID-19 Information and Resources
