90-year-old Army vet dies from COVID-19 at state veterans home
A 90-year-old Army veteran living at the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home died this week from COVID-19 complications after being discharged from a local hospital, the Nevada Department of Veterans Services announced.
The veteran, whom the state declined to identify, is the third patient at the home to die from COVID-19, according to the most recent data from the Department of Health and Human Services.
“On behalf of the entire Nevada Department of Veterans Services team, we offer our deepest condolences to the family of this honored Veteran,” said Veterans Services Director Kat Miller said in a statement Thursday. “This loss is deeply felt by this Veteran’s many friends at the Home.”
The veteran had tested negative for the new coronavirus in October before being admitted to the hospital for an unrelated condition but tested positive after he returned to the veterans home in Boulder City.
As cases in Nevada surge, the home is also experiencing an increase. The state’s database shows the facility has had 60 confirmed cases among 21 residents and 39 staff members. Eighteen patients and 33 faculty also have recovered from the disease.
Health and Human Services announced Friday that CARES Act dollars helped launch a $10 million contract with Quest Diagnostics to provide COVID-19 testing through the end of the year for the state’s veterans homes and the Nevada Department of Corrections.
With the diversion of testing to Quest through the end of the year, there should be a notable decrease in turnaround time for others continuing to send specimens to the state’s public health laboratory, the state said.
To curb the spread of COVID-19, the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home said it tests residents and staff weekly, sometimes twice a week if the community COVID-19 prevalence increases above 10 percent in Clark County.
Family visits are being held outdoors in a designated area with a plexiglass barrier to keep people safe. All visits need to be scheduled and are limited to 20 minutes to accommodate multiple visiting families.
Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @ByBrianaE on Twitter.
