Deaths At Livingston Nursing Homes In Coronavirus: NJDOH

LIVINGSTON, NJ — New Jersey health officials have released coronavirus case and death statistics for nursing and retirement homes throughout the state, including several in Livingston.

The New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) released its first wave of self-reported COVID-19 totals at long-term care (LTC) facilities earlier this week. The agency breaks the totals down by municipality and facility here.

As of Monday afternoon, the NJDOH list included the following facilities in Livingston:

• Care One at Livingston SNF - 40 cases, 5 deaths
• Care One At Livingston Assisted Living - 33 cases, 13 deaths
• Brandywine Assisted Living in Livingston - 15 cases, 5 deaths
• Atrium Post Acute Care of Livingston - 27 cases, 6 deaths
• Inglemoor Rehabilitation & Care Center -45 cases, 8 deaths

State health officials offered the following disclaimer about the LTC facility numbers, which may not match totals that other government and health agencies are reporting:

“Deaths include COVID-positive deaths, deaths in persons with pending test results, and respiratory illness deaths for which COVID testing was not performed. The cases reported in this table are self-reported by facilities at a point in time and may not reflect real-time data. Case numbers are constantly changing and subject to updates.”

According to the NJDOH, there have been 88,806 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey with 4,377 deaths linked to the disease as of Monday, an overall fatality rate of about 4.9 percent.

• See related article: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

LIVINGSTON TOWN OFFICIALS: COVID-19 DEATHS, CASES

On Tuesday, Livingston Township officials issued a statement about local attempts at transparency as the coronavirus crisis continues to claim lives.

• See related article: County Releases Latest Coronavirus Death/Case Totals In Livingston

Municipal officials wrote:

"The township is aware that a vast number of outlets, both governmental and media, regularly publish numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths attributable to Livingston, and that often the different sources present different numbers. The township is also aware that many residents, perhaps because of the sometimes conflicting numbers reported and the lack of details, are seeking more detailed information concerning the COVID-19 cases and deaths that have occurred in Livingston, including the locations and ages of the victims."

Livingston officials continued:

"The township fully appreciates the concerns of our residents and the desire for more detailed information and we want to be as transparent and open as possible. In that regard, the township’s health department is very involved in following up on all cases involving Livingston residents and maintains a local listing of cases and deaths, which are reported daily to Essex County, which in turn shares information with the state and other sources. However, there are very strict legal limitations on what information the township can and cannot share with the public, the most important being the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which is a federal law that created of national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without the patient's consent or knowledge. Under HIPAA, the township cannot legally disclose the names, addresses, dates of birth, underlying medical conditions or other sensitive health information of any identified COVID-19 case or death. However, after reviewing the legal restrictions and following guidance from the state of New Jersey, the township has confirmed that we can release overall statistical information without identifying, or linking such information to, any specific individual."

"A number of the inquiries we have received relate to the total number of Livingston residents tested, including those who tested negative, and the total number of cases, including those who may not have been tested," officials elaborated.

"However, the township does not receive any information on negative test results, and there is no formal reporting system, at the local, county, state or national level, for testing and or reporting untested cases of asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic but untested and untreated individuals," Livingston officials said. "Only with eventual antibody testing will we have a clearer idea of how many people actually were infected with the virus."

Livingston officials added:

"The only information that the township receives relates to COVID-19 cases with confirmed test results, for which the health department then receives information on those confirmed cases and outcomes, i.e. death, in recovery or recovered. The information on those in recovery vs. recovered is fluid and incomplete, as there is a lag in reporting on recovering patients. Thus, the accurate information that the township has principally relates to the total number of confirmed cases and the number of deceased."

"To that end, we are able to present the following information as to the COVID-19 confirmed cases and deaths in Livingston which is intended to be as responsive as we are legally permitted to be to the many of the questions that we have been asked," officials said.

The following table is based on Livingston Health Department information, as of Monday.

The chart below shows the breakdown of Livingston COVID-19 deaths by age bracket.

Livingston officials offered some analysis of the numbers:

"As reflected [in the above graph], 7 percent of the deceased were over 100 years old, 33% were between 90 and 99 years old, 42% were between 80 and 89 years old, and 9% were between 75 and 79 years old, meaning that 91% of the deceased were 75 years old and older. Only 4 of the deceased were under 75 years old and each of those was at least 55 years old and each had one or more underlying medical conditions. As the medical experts have unanimously stated, the elderly and those with serious underlying medical conditions are the most at risk for serious complications, including death, from COVID-19 and Livingston’s experience is fully consistent with and, unfortunately, confirmative of those facts."

"One of the most common questions we receive is why the number of deaths and mortality rate appears to be disproportionately high in Livingston," township officials wrote. "As reflected above, it is primarily due to the number of Long Term Care Facilities located in Livingston, which include nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and acute care and rehabilitation facilities which almost exclusively house elderly persons, many with underlying medical conditions."

"In closing, the collective thoughts and prayers of our community go out to all of those who have suffered the loss of a loved one or who have a loved one, or are themselves, suffering from this virus," Livingston officials said. "In addressing this tragic pandemic, we are committed to doing everything we can to keep our residents informed as to how to respond and protect themselves from this pandemic and of the impact of COVID-19 on our community while staying within the legal limits on our ability to disclose this information."

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Keep updated with local public safety alerts at the Patch Livingston Facebook page. Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Sign up for Patch email newsletters.