Holyoke Soldiers' Home Deaths At 18 During Coronavirus Outbreak

HOLYOKE, MA — Three more veterans have died of the new coronavirus at the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke, increasing the recent death toll at the state-run facility to 18 and prompting an investigation into its management.

At least 12 of those who died tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Three tests are pending, two came back negative and one is unknown, state officials said. Twenty-three more residents and seven staff members also tested positive.

"Today we are saddened to announce three additional deaths at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, and some additional COVID-19 positive residents at both homes," a spokesperson for the Executive Office of Health and Human Services said in a statement. "We extend our deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of the residents."

Two deaths related to COVID-19 were also reported this week at the Soldiers' Home in Chelsea.

The spokesperson called the outbreak a "critical health situation for our veterans" and went on to say the state would "make all resources available to the leadership of the Holyoke and Chelsea Soldiers’ Homes to contain the spread of the virus."

The announcement came after Gov. Charlie Baker put the superintendent of the Holyoke Soldiers' Home on paid administrative leave. The state then transferred control of the facility to the CEO of Western Massachusetts Hospital, created a clinical command team, and deployed the National Guard to help man the facility.

Baker also appointed Mark Pearlstein, a former federal prosecutor, to look into the deaths.

"The investigation will focus both on the events inside the facility that led to the tragic deaths of veterans in the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, and on management and organizational oversight of the COVID-19 response in the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home," Baker said in a news release.

Marylou Sudders, secretary of Executive Office Health and Human Services, said officials have finished coronavirus testing at the facility, which has more than 250 residents, and that more positive tests are expected.

"Based on these [initial] results, isolation and quarantine zones are being established to contain the virus outbreak," Sudders said at a news conference Thursday.

She also said the new leadership is updating staffing protocols and testing employees several times a day for fever.

The Soldiers' Home in Holyoke is a state-run residential health care facility available to eligible veterans of the commonwealth. According to the state website, its mission is to provide "Care with Honor and Dignity."

The Department of Veterans' Services said the Holyoke Soldiers' Home had 256 residents, including 232 in long-term care, as of the latest report.

Families have been able to reach out to the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke using the dedicated family hotline and email inbox to check in on their relatives and loved ones.

• The Family Hotline number is 413-552-4764, and help is available Monday – Friday 8:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m., Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• The email is CommunicationsMailbox-HLY@Mass.gov.

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