Hurricane death Nursing Home scandal in Louisiana
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Started by metmike - Sept. 5, 2021, 12:18 p.m.

Seven Louisiana nursing homes ordered closed for evacuating patients to warehouse before Hurricane Ida

Seven patients have died since the move with five of the deaths classified as storm-related, the state health department said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/seven-louisiana-nursing-homes-ordered-closed-evacuating-patients-warehouse-hurricane-n1278525

"The lack of regard for these vulnerable residents' wellbeing is an affront to human dignity," Louisiana's health officer, Dr. Joseph Kanter, said in the statement. "We have lost trust in these nursing homes to provide adequate care for their residents. We are taking immediate action today to protect public health."

State health Secretary Dr. Courtney N. Phillips warned: "There is more to come."

AARP Louisiana director Denise Bottcher said in a statement Friday that the organization is calling for state and federal investigations "into the warehousing of vulnerable, medically fragile adults and seniors during Hurricane Ida. "

Nursing homes have a duty to care for their residents, which includes planning for emergencies and evacuations," she said. "These tragic deaths are the result of a complete failure of oversight, enforcement, and planning dating back more than a decade."

Gov. John Bel Edwards has vowed an investigation that will include whether there was an intentional effort to obstruct inspection of the warehouse.

Ida struck near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, on Aug. 29 as a Category 4 hurricane. The nursing homes evacuated residents to the warehouse two days before Ida made landfall, the health department said.

The state was left in tatters, with 12 deaths in Louisiana attributed to the storm. On Saturday night 644,648 utility customers in Louisiana remained without power."



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