As a majority of nursing home residents have been fully vaccinated from the coronavirus, nursing home cases and deaths have dropped swiftly.
From the middle of December through the end of February, weekly coronavirus cases dropped by nearly 95%, according to federal data. During the third week of December, there were 33,629 coronavirus cases reported in U.S. nursing homes, according to federal data.
Then during late December going into January and February, much of the nursing home population got vaccinated. By the last week of February, nursing home cases dropped to 1,463 for the week.
Coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes also saw a large decrease. There were 6,071 coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes in the third week of December. By the last week of February, 763 were reported from nursing home residents.
Cases among nursing home staff members also saw similar drops.
Last week, the federal government relaxed visitation guidelines at U.S. nursing homes.
According to the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living, more than 85% of nursing homes and nearly one-third of assisted living and other senior living communities have already completed their third and final vaccination clinics.
