My mom has dementia and is in a group home. Last week we were informed that we can no longer visit inside the home. We are only allowed to take her somewhere or visit in the car due to Covid. Covid numbers are way down and I haven’t heard of anywhere else doing this. Can they keep us from visiting ?
Even if you wanted to believe an amorphous "cases are way down" I would probably point to the largest cohort of infected at-risk individuals throughout the pandemic, which has been those in hospitals or long-term care facilities. Younger people's cases may be down, healthy people's cases may be down... but yeah.
I know a lot of ppl who have gotten sick this autumn. Now that most of us have a pile of home covid tests, and are vaccinated, there is no reason to report infection status to anyone unless someone gets sick enough to need care. I can usually tell when there's a local surge less by the news, more by the # of people in the facebook neighborhood groups asking if anyone has any spare tests or where to pick one up. That and if the cold/flu shelves in the local pharmacy are wiped.
Covid and other respiratory illnesses are expected to result in a Tripledemic as a consequence of gathering during the holiday season. Covid cases are NOT going down, so do your own research and don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise. We are still in a pandemic and need to take precautions to keep ourselves and others safe. That includes your mom and her fellow residents, and it includes you as well.
You can subscribe to CDC free Email Updates so you'll know what's going on. Sign-up and maps to show where outbreaks exist are available on the CDC website.
It's very hard to get correct figures for deaths from Covid because a Covid death is often reported as something else. So far in the US we've lost 1.09 million people (at least, because as I said many deaths aren't reported as Covid). The dead include my sister-in-law, several classmates and friends, and others who will never be the same due to longstanding effects of Covid - breathing issues, heart issues, increased dementia and long Covid.
Please be grateful that the group home is trying to keep your mother safe. I wish more places would do that.
Honestly, I am so very surprised that your Mom's group home is even allowing her to be out and about where she could easily be infected and bring the virus back to the group home. Something sounds amiss here.
Yes, the group home can keep you OUT of their facility until this outbreak passes. I'm actually surprised they're allowing you to take her somewhere in the car; when there was a similar situation at my mother's Memory Care ALF, we could ONLY do window visits, outside in the cold and the snow.
The group home is attempting to keep your mother safe and Covid free, is what they're doing, not trying to irritate you.