A new report from OIG shows the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Medicare beneficiaries in U.S. nursing homes in 2020.
It provides objective, standardized data based on Medicare claims for beneficiaries in nursing homes throughout the country. Until this data snapshot, data on the number of nursing home residents who were diagnosed with COVID-19 or likely COVID-19 have not been readily available, particularly for early in the pandemic. Nursing homes are not required to report cases and deaths that occurred before May 8, 2020.
Key takeaways in this report include:
- 2 in 5 Medicare beneficiaries in nursing homes were diagnosed with either COVID-19 or likely COVID-19 in 2020.
- Almost 1,000 more beneficiaries died per day in April 2020 than in April 2019.
- Overall mortality in nursing homes increased to 22 percent in 2020 from 17 percent in 2019.
- About half of Black, Hispanic, and Asian beneficiaries in nursing homes had or likely had COVID-19, and 41 percent of White beneficiaries did.
- Understanding the pandemic’s effects on nursing home residents is necessary if tragedies like this are to be averted.
Read the Summary
Read the Full Data Snapshot
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