In the week since it was first reported, a COVID-19 outbreak at a North Adams, Massachusetts nursing home has spread to more than half of the residents.
Operator Berkshire Healthcare says 52 of 91 residents at the North Adams Commons now have COVID-19. Only three are reported to have been unvaccinated before the outbreak began in late July. Of the home’s 96 staff members, 10 have tested positive. Half are vaccinated.
“The state of Massachusetts still requires that employees within a skilled nursing facility be masked while they are in the facility, and in particular when they are delivering direct care," said Spokesperson Lisa Gaudet. "All of those same protocols were in place at the time of the outbreak.”
Visitation has been suspended at the home. The number of positive COVID-19 cases at another Berkshire Healthcare operated nursing home in Lenox — Kimball Farms — remains unchanged at two.