By Jessica Mathews/News@whmi.com


A local lawmaker is lending support to a plan to protect nursing home residents from coronavirus exposure.

Earlier this year, the governor implemented a plan to put COVID-19 patients into long-term care facilities alongside un-infected residents. A release states the plan was made without any legislative input. Republican State Representative Hank Vaupel of Fowlerville chairs the House Health Policy Committee. He spoke on the House floor Wednesday and urged his colleagues to join him in supporting the bill to stop transferring COVID-positive patients into nursing homes. He said the impact the virus has had on the elderly population, especially those living in nursing homes, has been horrific and they must give them a voice. Vaupel said there have been over 1700 deaths in nursing homes from the virus – adding it’s not only cruel and unusual punishment to put COVID-positive patients in with the most vulnerable but dead wrong.

Senate Bill 956 prohibits the placement of individuals with COVID-19 in any long-term care facility unless it has a separate dedicated building where affected patients can be properly quarantined and cared for. The legislative plan would require the state Department of Health and Human Services and the state department for Licensing and Regulatory Affairs to complete an evaluation and report of current policies regarding COVID-19 patients and nursing homes by August 15th. It would also require the DHHS to develop and implement a new plan by September 1st to create at least one dedicated regional facility within each of the state’s eight health regions for use as COVID-19 patient facilities.

State Representative Ann Bollin of Brighton Township, also threw her support behind the plan, saying the elderly and vulnerable people in our long-term care facilities are not expendable and deserve better.
She said in a release that the current plan needs to end immediately, and that this plan will better protect vulnerable residents.

The legislation now moves to the Senate for further consideration.