Renee Morgan, a housekeeper at a nursing home in St. Louis, caught Covid-19 in late April and considered herself lucky. Her case was mild. Her quarantine wasn’t. Morgan, 57, was stunned to learn that her employer, Blue Circle Rehab and Nursing, would not give her sick pay while she was out. She’s had to figure
Of all the agonizing final moments of George Floyd’s life, as he gasped for air from beneath a police officer’s knee, the most painful for Barbara Sands was when he called for his mother. It reminded her of her son Kyron, who police killed in Windham in February 2019 following a car chase and a shootout. “I wonder,
Members of the legislature’s Black and Puerto Rican Caucus traveled the state Monday visiting nursing homes from Stamford to Hartford to let the workers know they have their backs. Sen. Marilyn Moore, D-Bridgeport, said they want to make sure the workers, who are largely black and brown, know their lawmakers are looking out for them
Growing up as the oldest girl among 10 siblings in a large Catholic family in Detroit, Mary Kay Henry learned the power of collective action at an early age. Sometimes, she and her older brother would have to get all their siblings ready for school, packing lunches, getting kids dressed and shepherding everyone on to
The next Connecticut income tax debate is heating up — but not at the Capitol. A key state legislative caucus is crafting a letter urging town and city councils, local political committees and other grassroots groups to press Gov. Ned Lamont to tax Connecticut’s wealthy to close pandemic-induced state budget deficits. “As much as Governor
With the coronavirus tearing through the Chelsea Place Care Center in Hartford, Cassondra Diaz was careful to take precautions. She always wore a mask, even though she worked as a bookkeeper in the front office, not providing direct care to patients. Every night, when she returned home to her New Britain apartment, she sprayed down
As Connecticut leaders this week unveiled plans to ramp up testing among the most vulnerable communities hit by COVID-19, the number of infections and deaths at senior care facilities continued to rise, data released by the state Thursday shows. The data showed that as of Wednesday, 1,927 Connecticut nursing home patients died with coronavirus or
The US nursing home industry is clamoring for legal immunity during the coronavirus pandemic, even as horror stories from hard-hit facilities enrage families, consumer advocates and the American public. Healthcare organizations insist liability protections are essential for under-resourced nursing homes fighting against Covid-19, while an already staggering death toll continues to climb. Tricia Neuman, senior vice-president of
Widespread testing at nursing homes across Connecticut has begun, part of a push by Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration to curb the spread of COVID-19 among one of the state’s most vulnerable populations. But operators at some of the homes said Tuesday that while all residents are being tested, staff members are not. That has raised concerns about
The single-story red brick building looks unremarkable on the outside. But this nursing home in central Connecticut is now the site of a novel approach to protect the population most vulnerable to the coronavirus. Connecticut is among a handful of states to open COVID-19-only facilities that provide an environment specially designed to handle infected patients —