Top Stories

FEMA stepping in to help nursing homes impacted by COVID-19

PITTSBURGH — Nursing homes have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

In Pennsylvania, 1,400 people in care homes have died. That’s two-thirds of the total deaths.

Here in western Pennsylvania, about 150 people have died.

>>RELATED STORY: New numbers show Brighton nursing home has about 65% of Beaver Co. COVID-19 cases

Industry leaders blame the deaths on shortages of masks, gowns and a lack of tests.

“The biggest problem right now is a lack of PPE. We’ve all heard about N95 masks but it’s not just masks. It’s hand sanitizer and gowns and gloves and in some cases face masks. Trying to make sure people who serve older adults have what they need is vitally important,” Adam Marles, CEO of Leading Edge Pa said.

Have questions about the spread of the coronavirus? We have an entire section dedicated to coverage of the outbreak. CLICK HERE for more.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is stepping in Friday to help by distributing Personal Protective Equipment to nursing homes.

FEMA is preparing shipments of surgical masks, gowns and gloves to facilities all across the country as thousands of nursing homes deal with climbing COVID-19 cases, according to CNN.

Officials hope FEMA supplies will help bridge the gap until June when the PPE supply chain gets caught up.

If you want to receive BREAKING ALERTS, please download our WPXI News App. You can also follow WPXI on Facebook and Twitter.