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Seven nursing homes in Louisiana lost their licenses after at least seven residents died during their evacuation to a warehouse in Hurricane Ida, officials said.
The nursing homes, which all appear to be owned by the same owner, have failed to “execute an evacuation plan that preserves the human dignity of residents,” the state’s health department said on Tuesday in a report. communicated.
The facility where the residents were moved was in Independence, in the parish of Tangipahoa, about 70 miles north of New Orleans. State inspectors described it as a “warehouse site”.
Initial inspections found the facility met a “minimum” safe shelter standard, but the owner did not communicate the “dire situation” as conditions deteriorated, the health ministry said.
Local health workers reported that residents were placed on mattresses that sat in stormwater on the ground and people were left in their own trash, NBC affiliate WDSU reported.
A state surveyor who went to assess the situation after learning the standard of care had ‘dropped’ was forced to leave without conducting a proper inspection, said Secretary of State for Health Dr Courtney N. Phillips, in a Tuesday press release.
“In the end, lives were lost – it was grandparents, neighbors and friends, and we know families are hurting,” Phillips said. “As a ministry, we take formal regulatory action. “
The Department of Health has confirmed seven deaths of nursing home residents who were evacuated to Independence Institution, five of which were classified as related to the storm.
The Department of Health said last week it was working to find safe placements for the 843 residents.
The facilities named Tuesday were River Palms Nursing and Rehab, South Lafourche Nursing and Rehab, Maison Orleans Healthcare Center, Park Place Healthcare Nursing Home, West Jefferson Health Care Center, Maison De Ville Nursing Home and Maison Deville Nursing Home of Harvey.
All seven appear to belong to Bob Dean, according to NursingHomeDatabase.com, which aggregates data from the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Dean did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
He defended the evacuations in an interview with Baton Rouge television station WAFB last week, saying the state surveyor was evicted from the property to protect residents’ privacy.
“We only had five deaths in six days, and normally with 850 people you will have two a day, so we took very good care of people,” Dean said.
State Attorney General Jeff Landry, who said Tuesday his office was investigating the “tragedy,” urged the public to provide information “regarding the transfer, conditions or deaths of nursing home residents “.
The Associated Press contributed.
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