As nursing homes ban visitors, families fight to see loved ones

Almost six months after the coronavirus first showed up in Michigan, many nursing homes and long-term care facilities are still restricting visitation amidst a pandemic that affects the elderly more severely than any other age group.

Those policies extend even to hospice care facilities where people are sometimes forced to live out their final days without being able to see their own families.

According to an article in Bridge Magazine, some families have been turned away even as their loved ones lay dying.

“It has been really hard,” said Barry Cargill, the executive director of the Michigan HomeCare and Hospice Association. “In many cases, families are not allowed to see their [relative]. Sometimes, they can’t even go to a window.”

Not all long-term and hospice care facilities are imposing such restrictions. Guidance from the state’s Department of Health and Human Services suggests facilities may allow visitation in some circumstances, but stops short of requiring it.

You can read the full story here.