Belmont Coronavirus: 30 Nursing Home Residents Die

BELMONT, MA — The Belmont Manor nursing home and rehabilitation facility has seen 30 residents die from the new coronavirus. In a letter to residents sent on Wednesday morning, facility administrator Stewart Karger confirmed the deaths and said 116 residents tested positive for the virus.

Karger said in the letter that 94 employees, out of around 190, have been tested and 59 were positive. Karger added that the facility is working to get all employees tested

Belmont Manor is a 135 bed facility. Of the 30 residents who died, four were in the hospital.

"While all of those numbers are difficult to see, it is the last one that is the hardest," Karger wrote in the letter, "Though the residents at Belmont Manor tend to be older, there is no age at which one wants to lose a family member or worry about their health, particularly not at a time when visitation is so limited."

The town of Belmont updated it's case count on Thursday to reflect a total of 120 confirmed COVID-19 cases. The town lists 31 deaths as "possibly related" to COVID-19.

Belmont Manor has placed all symptomatic staff on sick leave until they are asymptomatic for 24 hours. According to the letter, any staff that has tested positive is allowed to work if asymptomatic for 24 hours. Pay for staff at Belmont Manor was also increased, Karger said.

“Every member of the Belmont Manor team is heartbroken by the losses of beloved members of our community. From the beginning of this pandemic, we have taken every possible step to address this fast moving situation. Despite these multi-faceted efforts and our longstanding and recognized focus on quality care, the impacts of the Coronavirus have been hard hitting. Our staff continues to remain vigilant and focused on creating meaningful connections between our residents and their families in a time of physical-distancing," Karger said in a statement to Patch.

During Governor Charlie Baker's briefing on Thursday, Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders said the National Guard will be deployed to the Belmont facility. "National guard has conducted testing at Belmont Manor, and we're sending in our technical assistance swat team to help them figure out what to do," said Sudders.

Patch will update this story.