BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - North Dakota health officials said Tuesday they are expanding visitation at long-term care facilities to include residents who are showing symptoms of declining health.
Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, the state has allowed people to visit patients who are dying. The rules have been expanded to include residents showing “documented signs and symptoms of sharp psychosocial or medical decline, which is above and beyond normal parameters,” health officials said in a release. Officials said those patients may benefit by social interaction.
The guidelines state that those situations should only be allowed on a limited basis, must not be considered routine and may be granted only after careful consideration by a facility’s clinical team.
Health officials Tuesday reported 38 new COVID-19 cases statewide, including 13 in Cass County, 10 in Morton County and nine in Burleigh County. The state has confirmed 3,539 cases of the virus and 79 deaths. Twenty-five people remain hospitalized.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
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