Patients diagnosed with coronavirus have been placed in nursing homes in Dutchess County under a mandate from the state Department of Health.

However, it’s unclear how many patients have been placed and in which nursing homes.

The county Department of Behavioral and Community Health confirmed “there are nursing homes in Dutchess County who have been assigned COVID-19 patients and they are being treated in the isolation area of those facilities,” Colleen Pillus, spokesperson for the County Executive’s Office, told the Journal.

In a letter dated March 25, the state Department of Health stated an urgent need to expand hospital capacity to meet the demand of patients with COVID-19 requiring acute care.

"No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the (nursing home) solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19," reads the letter, which was addressed to all nursing home administrators, directors of nursing and hospital discharge planners.

Jill Montag, public information officer with the state Department of Health, told the Journal Thursday the letter was meant as guidance. However, the letter calls the contents a "directive," a description also used by Dutchess County in describing the letter's contents.

Nursing homes have been at the center of the pandemic in recent days. Across the state more than one in four coronavirus-related deaths — 3,060 of 11,586 as of Tuesday — had occurred in nursing homes or adult care facilities, according to state data. In Dutchess, 11 deaths have occurred in nursing homes.

While the state has released totals for confirmed coronavirus-related fatalities by county, it has not broken down the totals by facility.

The Thompson House at Northern Dutchess Hospital in Rhinebeck has established a COVID isolation unit to care for infected patients, according to Sarah Colomello, manager of public and community affairs at The Thompson House. While she confirmed at least one patient had been taken in, she she did not specify how many there have been, referring the Journal to the county.

"We are mandated by New York state to provide care for people who were hospitalized for COVID-19 but can be appropriately discharged to nursing centers," Colomello said. The nursing home is part of Nuvance Health.

The Grand Rehabilitation and Nursing, River Valley in Poughkeepsie also has taken in patients, according to a resident there. Representatives from the facility have not returned Journal inquiries.

Neither Montag nor Dutchess County responded to Journal inquiries regarding how many patients had been placed in county facilities, where they are, when they were moved, from which hospital they were moved and who was funding the care given.

The Journal reached out to 12 nursing homes in Dutchess County Thursday; other than Thompson House, no other facilities that responded confirmed coronavirus patients had been transferred there.

According to the state, nursing homes are not being used to expand hospital surge capacity, but is meant to ensure a patients who no longer need hospital care to not take up that space. Patients discharged to a nursing home would either be a resident of the facility originally or someone who needs rehab services or a long term stay due to medical needs.

At least 2,300 nursing homes have coronavirus cases

Letter from the editor: Help us report on COVID-19 illnesses in nursing homes

Coronavirus: DCC recovery center ready for use, not needed yet, county says

Pillus noted "hospitals discharging to nursing homes is also routine under ordinary circumstances."

The state directive was issued to "clarify expectations for nursing homes receiving residents returning from hospitalization and for (nursing homes) accepting new patients," the March 25 letter read. It also said nursing homes "are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission," the letter read.

Montag told the Journal "if the nursing home is not medically prepared to meet a patient’s needs, they should not take the patient," a stipulation not included in the March 25 letter.

Neal Nibur, a resident at the Grand in Poughkeepsie, said he was told by nurses and aids that the home was taking in COVID-19 patients. The patients were brought in two or three days ago and kept in a separate area of the facility, he said.

Kathryn Salensky, an attorney who operates the Mid Hudson Elder Justice Project and George's Justice hotline, which provides advocacy services to seniors in Dutchess, Columbia and Greene counties, according to its website, said residents of the Grand Rehabilitation and Nursing, River Valley in Poughkeepsie have reached out to her, as well. However, she did not have first-hand knowledge of any patients who had been moved there.

Nibur, who just turned 83-years-old, has Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and fears dying if he was to catch the virus. Patients who are older and have pre-existing conditions have been shown to be more susceptible to the virus' more dangerous complications.

"They've done such a good job about securing his place, nobody comes in or out, staff has to have their temperature taken before they even work. They'll have gowns and masks, the whole nine yards. And we thought, well, we are safe," Nibur said. "And then they bring in these four people who have tested positive."

Salensky questioned the need for placing COVID-19 patients within facilities that house a vulnerable population, adding that the nurses and aids that work in nursing homes already do not have the required personal protective equipment.

In a statement sent from Montag Thursday, the state said "We've said from the start that protecting our most vulnerable populations including people in nursing homes is our top priority and that's why the state acted quickly and aggressively to issue guidance specifically for these facilities on testing, infection control, environmental cleaning, staffing, visitation, admission, readmission, and outreach to residents and families. The department will continue to work with administrators of private and county nursing homes to do everything possible to protect the health, well-being and privacy of the residents who call these facilities home."

Earlier this month, the county confirmed there were two nursing homes with a confirmed case of COVID-19, one of which has more than one resident or staff confirmed positive.

Governor Andrew Cuomo issued an executive order Wednesday requiring nursing homes to report positive COVID-19 cases and deaths to the families of those who are living in the nursing home facility within 24 hours.

Nursing homes have been struggling from a shortage of protective equipment and have submitted emergency supply requests to Dutchess County Emergency Response, which is trying to assist in providing supplies, Pillus said.

The George's Justice hotline can be reached at 518-822-7268.

Saba Ali: SAli1@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-451-4518.