76% Of Fairfield Coronavirus Deaths Involve Nursing Homes

FAIRFIELD, CT — More than three-fourths of Fairfield residents who have died after getting the new coronavirus are nursing home patients, according to the town health director.

“These are our most vulnerable residents,” Health Department Director Sands Cleary said Thursday during a news conference streamed on Facebook and the town website. “… We must continue our work to protect them and all the residents and workers of Fairfield.”

As of Thursday, 38 town residents had died in association with the virus, and 76 percent of the victims lived in nursing homes. Of the 335 confirmed virus cases in Fairfield as of Thursday, 27 percent of the patients were nursing home residents.

All the nursing homes in Fairfield have had confirmed cases and virus-associated deaths, Cleary said, adding that state health officials are conducting inspections of and offering guidance to the facilities. The town also remains in contact with the nursing homes to assist in obtaining protective equipment.

Fairfield has the lowest confirmed case rate along Fairfield County's Interstate 95 coastal corridor, First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick said Thursday in an email to residents. With 538 confirmed cases per 100,000 residents, only Easton, Monroe and Newtown have lower rates countywide. Kupchick added that 117 town residents have reported a full recovery from the virus.

Measures to prevent virus transmission such as business closures and physical distancing will likely stay in place for several more weeks, Cleary said, noting that varying predictive models indicate the virus may be past its peak in the county and state but that it also may not peak until late May.

“I know everyone is eager to get back to work, to get back to our normal lives, but we are just not there yet,” Kupchick said during the news conference.

Precautions will need to continue “to some degree” until a vaccine is developed, Cleary said, adding the current wave of cases is likely to be the first of two or three peaks during the next year.