Daines urges transparency in Montana’s nursing homes COVID-19 cases, deaths

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) requested that Montana Gov. Steve Bullock immediately make available all reported data on cases and deaths due to COVID-19 that have occurred in the state’s long-term care facilities.

“I urge you to make this information publicly available without further delay to help mitigate the spread of the coronavirus and help prevent future loss of life,” Sen. Daines wrote in an Aug. 28 letter sent to Bullock.

Currently, Montana is one of four states not reporting cases and deaths due to COVID-19 in long-term care facilities, according to Sen. Daines, who cited an Aug. 20 report from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

“This lack of reporting causes an information gap and hinders the ability for policymakers to produce comprehensive, effective solutions that will help combat the spread of this virus and prevent future deaths,” Sen. Daines wrote. “Transparency around COVID-19 data in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities is critical to inform policy solutions that will help slow the spread, improve senior care, and save lives.”

To date, outbreaks of COVID-19 in Montana’s senior care facilities have resulted in at least 200 positive novel coronavirus cases and 25 deaths, wrote Sen. Daines, citing several news reports. “However, the data currently available provides an incomplete picture of the impact of COVID-19 on Montana’s senior communities,” he wrote.

COVID-19 can be lethal to older adults with underlying health conditions and can spread more easily in congregate settings like nursing homes and assisted living facilities, according to the senator’s letter.