PUBLISHED: January 2023
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This is the second report in the series and builds on the first OIG report by focusing on nursing homes themselves. It looks at the extent to which they had residents who were diagnosed with COVID-19 or likely COVID-19, and the characteristics of nursing homes with extremely high infection rates. The third report will feature specific challenges nursing homes faced and the strategies they used to deal with them.

For-profit nursing homes made up a disproportionate percentage of the nursing homes with extremely high infection rates during both surges. Other characteristics varied by surge. For example, urban nursing homes were more likely to have extremely high infection rates during the first surge, but rural nursing homes were more likely to have extremely high rates during the second surge.

Office of the Inspector General. “More Than a Thousand Nursing Homes Reached Infection Rates of 75 Percent or More in the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic; Better Protections Are Needed for Future Emergencies.” Department of Health and Human Services, 19 Jan. 2023, oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/OEI-02-20-00491.asp, January 2023.