UPDATED: More Than 50% Of Carlyle House Residents Positive For Coronavirus

Originally posted at 1:55 p.m. Updated at 5:28 p.m.

FRAMINGHAM – On April 13, families who have loved ones at Carlyle House Skilled Nursing & Rehab Center in Framingham were informed of the first COVID-19 positive case,

Ten days later, and the City of Framingham is reporting 26 positive cases of the coronavirus at the Winter Street Street nursing & rehab center.

Today, April 24, families reported to SOURCE than 30 of the residents are positive for the coronavirus. The center is licensed for 55 beds.

Families are also telling SOURCE that staff was not tested, just residents of the house were tested.

UPDATED: SOURCE emailed the administrator for the facility a series of questions. His only response was that 30 residents are positive and 4 are hospitalized.

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“Be assured that Carlyle House is taking every and all precautions to prevent the spread of this virus,’ said the nursing & rehab facility in District 6 a couple of weeks ago to families.

When there was just one case the facility said “this particular resident has been isolated to a designated room in a dedicated wing of the nursing home.  An exclusive, dedicated staff has been assigned to this wing and will not interact with the rest of the people in the facility.”

Carlyle House is a “privately-owned, 55-bed, single-level skilled nursing facility,” that provides  Short-term Rehabilitation, Long-term Care, or Respite Care, our mission is to provide you or your loved ones with the most compassionate care possible in a comfortable, home-like environment.

Carlyle House in Framingham is not the only nursing, senior, or long-term facility with many positive cases.

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AARP Massachusetts sent a letter to the Massachusetts Governor this month seeking the names of senior facilities with confirmed COVID-19 cases made public.

“We urge Massachusetts’ Department of Public Health to release publicly the names of nursing facilities with confirmed COVID-19 cases,” wrote AARP Massachusetts on behalf of its 775,000 AARP members in Massachusetts.

“Contrary to concerns that such disclosures would violate a patient’s health privacy, we do not believe HIPAA precludes a state health agency from releasing the names of facilities because a facility is not a covered entity as defined by federal law. We believe transparency and notice to the public is critical for public health,” wrote AARP Massachusetts.

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Earlier this week, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed a bill that would requires that senior, rehab, and long-term facilities send data on COVID-19 positive cases and on mortalities to public health officials during this public health emergency.

The bill now goes to the Massachusetts Senate.