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State Orders Nursing Homes To Give Daily COVID-19 Updates To Residents, Families

Indiana will now require long-term care facilities – such as nursing homes – to dedicate a staff member for communicating with residents and their families on COVID-19 information.

Communications at these facilities have been a source of ongoing controversy through the pandemic, with reports of little to no information from some homes.

Family and Social Services Administration Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dan Rusyniak says every resident and their family has a right to know what’s going on in their facility.

“And if families do not feel like they are getting this communication, we have laid out a way that they can reach out to us,” Rusyniak says.

Rusyniak urges people to email the state at familyoutreach@ISDH.in.org.

Rusyniak says new guidance from the state requires long-term care facilities to communicate with residents and families daily on the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths, as well as what steps the facility is taking to mitigate the spread.

Contact Brandon at  bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.

For the latest news and resources about COVID-19, bookmark our Coronavirus In Indiana page  here. 

This is a rapidly evolving story, and we are working hard to bring you the most up-to-date information. However, we recommend checking the websites of the  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  or the  Indiana State Department of Health  for the most recent numbers of COVID-19 cases.

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Brandon J. Smith has previously worked as a reporter and anchor for KBIA Radio in Columbia, MO. Prior to that, he worked for WSPY Radio in Plano, IL as a show host, reporter, producer and anchor. His first job in radio was in another state capitol, in Jefferson City, as a reporter for three radio stations around Missouri. Brandon graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2010, with minors in political science and history. He was born and raised in Chicago.