Nursing home visits may resume; State spends $44M of fed aid

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Islanders may be allowed to make drive-up visits to nursing homes for the upcoming Father’s Day weekend.

State Department of Health Director Nicole Alexander-Scott said Monday that her agency is working on possibly easing restrictions at nursing homes, where the majority of the state’s fatal cases of COVID-19 have occurred.

She said visitors would have to stay in their car with masks on while the nursing home resident would be kept several feet away and also have to wear a mask.

She also warned that visits may not be possible at all long-term care facilities and that they would be by appointment only.

Visits have been banned at long-term care facilities since the pandemic started in March.

Other developments in the coronavirus crisis in Rhode Island:

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VIRUS CASES

Health officials reported on Monday that Rhode Island had 18 new coronavirus-related deaths and 151 additional positive cases of COVID-19 since Friday.

That brings the state’s virus death toll to 851 and more than 16,000 positive cases. Among the newly reported deaths was the state’s first child fatality from the coronavirus.

Health officials also said Monday there are currently 127 people hospitalized with the virus in Rhode Island.

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BEACH WEEKEND

Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo said Monday that it was overall a “good, safe weekend” in the state.

She said many state beaches were at or near capacity but none had to turn away guests. She also said park rangers had to break up some large groups, but people were generally following the state’s limit of 15 people per group.

Raimondo said the only major complaints her office has received is that too many people aren’t wearing masks on the ferry to Block Island, a popular tourist destination.

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FEDERAL AID

Rhode Island has spent just $44 million of the $1.25 billion the state received in federal aid to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new “ COVID-19 Transparency Portal ” the state launched Friday.

The website developed by Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo’s administration breaks down the state’s spending of its Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES, act money.

The website shows that the state has spent just $44 million of the funds as of May 26 and committed another $143 million of the money for future spending.

Among the major expenses was roughly $9 million in payments to Dimeo Construction to build three field hospitals that went mostly unused as the state never saw the expected surge in COVID-19 cases.

ResMed, a California-based medical equipment company, also earned nearly $5 million providing the state with undisclosed supplies.

Companies including global engineering firm AECOM, industrial supplies company Fastenal and medical supplies company Merrow-Forloh were each paid nearly $2 million for supplies and surge-related response, though the database doesn’t provide further details about the expenses.

Elsewhere, Amazon was paid $330,000 and Zoom was paid about $13,000 to assist with agency operations, according to the website.

Another $8 million has been committed to nursing homes and child care providers and $7 million is earmarked for virus testing.

The Raimondo administration says the website will be updated monthly.

Raimondo has said she’s reluctant to aggressively spend down the mone y until she knows whether Congress will approve a second round of stimulus funding proposed by House Democrats.

Rhode Island faces a budget deficit of roughly $800 million as a result of the economic shutdown from the pandemic, but local business and political leaders have called on Raimondo to use some of the federal funds to help small businesses.

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