On the long-term care webinar yesterday, June 25, 2020, the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) announced that it will be releasing updated visitation guidance on Monday, June 29 for all long-term care facilities, including comprehensive care facilities and residential care facilities. Important highlights include:
- Outdoor visitation will be required of all long-term care facilities not already offering it starting on July 4, 2020, unless there has been a new facility-onset COVID-19 case in the past fourteen (14) days.
- Indoor visitation will be permitted for all long-term care facilities starting on July 4, 2020, unless there has been a new facility-onset COVID-19 case in the past fourteen (14) days. While indoor visitation will not be required over the 4th of July weekend, long-term care facilities should be planning to implement indoor visitation by mid-July based upon the forthcoming ISDH guidance.
The updated guidance is expected to be released via a LTC Newsletter on Monday, June 29, 2020, and it is possible that this new visitation guidance will be announced publicly at the Governor’s next press conference on Wednesday, July 1, 2020.
Please contact residents, resident representatives, and other applicable family members as soon as possible, starting today, with your plans for the 4th of July weekend, even before the ISDH guidance is issued. We strongly urge this connection to let them know what outdoor visitation will look like if your facility is not already offering it (i.e., how to schedule an outdoor visit), and if you will permit indoor visitation. Doing so should help alleviate the flood of calls from families that will occur following the release of the updated guidance. If your facility is not ready to permit indoor visitation starting on July 4, 2020, we recommend that you provide a timeline for when you will begin offering it.
We will provide further updates as soon as the guidance is released. The updated guidance is expected to include further details on the term “new facility-onset COVID-19 case” and additional guidance on new admissions, medical appointments, and other internal activities.