Reviewing COVID-19 Testing Protocols in Assisted Living

Testing continues to be an essential component of infection prevention and control in our settings. Questions about required testing continue because of the rapid guidance changes and the different required testing strategies between assisted living and nursing homes. New testing guidance for assisted living communities was updated on March 3.

Starting on page two, the guidance indicates the minimum required testing in assisted living organizations, including symptomatic residents and staff, those who have experienced close-contact or high-risk exposures, and during an outbreak. There is no requirement for routine surveillance testing based on the county positivity rate in assisted living. Some members received conflicting guidance from members of the MDH team.

Today, LeadingAge Minnesota confirmed with the infection control assessment and response (ICAR) division and health regulation division (HRD) there is no surveillance testing requirement based on county positivity rate in assisted living.

For questions on testing or other infection prevention and control topics, please contact Kari Everson.

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