Boerum Hill Nursing Home Had 38 Unreported Covid Deaths: New Data

BROOKLYN, NY — New data shows that the coronavirus has taken an even more severe toll on New York's nursing homes than the state's past disclosures had indicated — including dozens of previously unreported deaths at facilities near Park Slope.

The updated data released Saturday now includes nursing home residents who died from COVID-19 at hospitals, in addition to deaths that occurred in each facility.

In Brooklyn, 36 nursing homes saw their official death counts rise as a result of the newly reported fatalities.

The biggest increase in the borough was at Sheepshead Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where 50 residents died in hospitals, the second-most of any nursing home in the state. The nursing home previously had only reported nine coronavirus deaths.

Another large jump was at Hopkins Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare in Boerum Hill, where 38 residents died in hospitals.

The new disclosures came about a week after Attorney General Letitia James released a report alleging that Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration had undercounted thousands of nursing home deaths, in part because the state was not counting residents who died in hospitals.

Here is the data for nursing home deaths near Park Slope, through Feb. 4:

Hopkins Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare:

• Out-of-facility deaths among residents (hospital or other): 38
• Confirmed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 5
• Presumed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 15
• Total deaths: 58

Cobble Hill Health Center:

• Out-of-facility deaths among residents (hospital or other): 1
• Confirmed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 6
• Presumed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 50
• Total deaths: 57

Caton Park Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Prospect Park South:

• Out-of-facility deaths among residents (hospital or other): 4
• Confirmed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 2
• Presumed COVID-19 deaths at nursing home: 3
• Total deaths: 9

After James's report was released on Jan. 28, Cuomo's health commissioner, Howard Zucker, defended the state's practices, noting that the more than 4,000 nursing home residents who died in hospitals were already included in the state's overall count.

Then, last Thursday, a state judge ordered the Department of Health to release data on in-hospital deaths among nursing home residents. Two days later, the state added those deaths to its totals, bringing the official death toll at New York's nursing homes to more than 13,000.

Patch reporter Nick Garber contributed to this report.