The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced new guidelines for limited outdoor visitation at nursing homes and community residential care facilities, commonly referred to as assisted living facilities.
“We understand how difficult it has been during these past few months for friends and families to be distanced from their loved ones who reside in nursing homes and similar facilities, but we believe the visitation restrictions put in place have helped save lives and have helped protect the health and wellbeing of the dedicated workers who care for these residents,” said Marshall Taylor, Acting Director of DHEC.
A facility’s ability to allow visitation depends on a number of factors, including but not limited to the following:
- Existing cases of the virus within the facility
- Facility’s staffing capabilities and PPE availability
- Facility’s ability to comply with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) testing requirements.