It is so great that your mom, dad or other loved ones have received their COVID-19 vaccine. This is an important step towards protecting their health, achieving herd immunity and returning to normal life.
Both CMS and CDC recognize the importance of visiting your relatives as part of staying healthy. You can now visit your loved ones inside when the positivity rate in your nursing home’s county is less than 10%. In addition, if the positivity rate in your nursing home’s county is more than 10%, and less than 70% of residents in the facility are fully vaccinated, then only residents who are fully vaccinated should receive visitors.
For now, nursing home staff, patients, residents, and visitors need to continue practicing the 3 W’s: Wear a mask, Wash your hands, Watch your distance. And, nursing homes must continue to implement all current CDC infection control guidance and adhere to CMS’ regulations and guidance for testing. As vaccination increases and COVID-19 cases decrease, we look forward to more visitation and social interaction among residents, friends, family, and lovedones. We will continue to learn and make updates to visitation over the coming months.
