North Dakota Governor Boosts COVID-19 Measures for Seniors

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has instructed health officials to prioritize COVID-19 testing, medical staff, and supplies for long-term care community residents, reports the Associated Press . He unveiled the initiative following the announcement of a "somber milestone" of more than 200 deaths due to complications from the coronavirus and "too many" fatalities in nursing communities. Last week, state health officials disclosed 26 deaths in the previous seven days, all of whom were men and women in their 70s, 80s, and 90s with underlying health conditions. Burgum said efforts will be made to return test results of long-term care community residents within 24 hours and prioritize contact tracing and follow-up in those communities. North Dakota is awaiting new tests from the White House that can determine a result within 15 minutes, which will be committed to residents and healthcare personnel in nursing communities. Burgum added that emergency medical technicians and other medical staff will be brought in to assist with testing, while some 200 nurses from the state health department's operations center will help provide staff coverage. "We're doing all this because protecting the vulnerable is our top priority," the governor declared.