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10 dead after all residents of Kansas nursing home contract coronavirus

10 dead after all residents of Kansas nursing home contract coronavirus
Posted at 1:35 PM, Oct 20, 2020
and last updated 2020-10-20 14:41:24-04

NORTON, Kan. – A Kansas nursing home has been hit hard by COVID-19.

All 62 of the residents at the Andbe Home in Norton have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and 10 of the patients have died as a result of the disease, according to the Norton County Health Department.

In a press release, the health department said Monday that one of the surviving residents has been hospitalized and the remaining 51 are being cared for at the privately-owned nursing home facility.

Additionally, the department says some staff members have tested positive for the virus, though a specific number was not provided. The remaining staff is being tested as a precaution.

Officials say steps are being taken to prevent further COVID-19 outbreaks, including quarantining residents in their rooms and not allowing outside visitors into the facility.

The outbreak at the nursing home is consistent with trends in the area. Norton County, where the facility is located, had the largest number of COVID-19 cases per 100,00 residents in any county in the U.S. for the two weeks ending Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Federal data shows that more than 252,900 coronavirus cases have been reported among nursing home residents across the nation and over 59,600 have died from COVID-19.

Editor's note: A previous version of this story said the nursing home is located in Topeka, Kansas, when it's actually in Norton.