Assisted living facilities in Austin will be required to notify patients and next of kin in the event of any confirmed COVID-19 case in the facility, according to public health orders issued April 21.
The change comes in an update to control orders issued by the Austin-Travis County interim health authority, affecting long-term care facilities, assisted living, and nursing homes.
“The updated orders stipulate that if there is a confirmed case of COVID-19 in a facility, all patients, staff and next of kin must be notified,” the city’s public information department said in a news release.
Additionally, in the event of a cluster at a facility involving two or more patients, the facility must:
- Restrict receiving new patients into the facility or any returning patients to the facility until it has been cleared by Austin Public Health (APH); and
- Make all staff and contractors available for testing, if requested.
APH says that in the event of an outbreak it may deploy a ‘Strike Team’ of additional personnel and equipment to supplement staffing at facilities until the outbreak is controlled.
A Strike Team is a part of the Incident Command System followed by the Austin-Travis County Emergency Operations Center (EOC).
To date, there have been eight outbreaks at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. APH estimates that 67 staff and 96 residents have been infected, and 15 residents affected by COVID-19 have died.
“It is critical that we continue to look for new avenues to protect our most vulnerable populations,” said Dr. Mark Escott, Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority.
The updated order also requires all individuals entering a care facility to wear a surgical face mask or cloth face covering, if surgical masks are unavailable. All employees and contractors who require contact with residents within 6 feet must utilize the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommended Personal Protective Equipment for COVID-19.
Austin’s initial control order for these facilities dates to March 11. In that order, the health authority mandated temperature checks, certain signage, and making available hand sanitizer to visitor,s patients, and staff.
Read the Public Health Authority’s Control Orders to Care Facilities:
