TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A South Florida veterans’ nursing home has had 12 residents test positive for COVID-19, including one who died, according to the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
Steve Murray, a spokesman for the agency, said 11 veterans at the Alexander “Sandy” Nininger State Veterans’ Nursing Home in Pembroke Pines are infected. Most, Murray said, are asymptomatic and doing well.
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“Residents continue to talk to their loved ones via phones, tablets and computers,” Murray said in a statement. “The home administrator sends updates to families and guardians on a daily basis.”
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs started testing nursing-home staff members, who are state employees, for the virus this week, Murray said. No staff members had tested positive.
The News Service of Florida reported that the nursing home had its first two COVID-19 cases in mid-March. One of the two residents died from the virus. Murray said the other resident was discharged from a hospital where he was treated for the deadly disease and returned to the nursing home.
As of Tuesday morning, Florida had 21,367 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. It had 1,135 cases involving residents or staff members of long-term care facilities.