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Buckeye Health Plan Supports COVID-19 Rapid Testing for Ohio’s Most Vulnerable

Date: 05/27/20

Donation to National Church Residences Brings Much-Needed Testing to Seniors

Buckeye Health Plan is supporting National Church Residences rollout of an innovative COVID-19 on-site rapid testing program for vulnerable older adults living in 1,500 nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Franklin and surrounding counties. The new Post-Acute Regional Rapid Testing (PARRT) program was developed in partnership with Leading Age Ohio and Ohio Living and in cooperation with the Ohio Department of Health, Franklin County Health Department and Columbus Health Department.

The number of COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to climb at nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the country where the oldest and most vulnerable citizens live, including here in Ohio. While hospitals and other first responders have received priority for obtaining increased levels of personal protective equipment and test kits, skilled nursing facilities have been left behind in these efforts to bolster their supplies, even though they also are on the front lines of the battle to contain the COVID-19 virus. Without a push for more PPE and rapid preventative testing, the number of reported cases will likely continue to grow.

“COVID-19’s devastating impact on Ohio’s seniors required immediate action,” said Steve Province, President and CEO of Buckeye Health Plan. “As part of our commitment to improving the health of our community, one person at a time, we are proud to support National Church Residences to proactively test, identify cases and control outbreaks within long-term care facilities.”

PARRT offers COVID-19 testing for symptomatic and asymptomatic residents and staff usually within 72 hours of receiving the request, seven days a week. The goal is to provide the results within a day through the Ohio Department of Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center lab And/or other lab partners The majority of testing is administered by volunteers through the Medical Reserve Corps who are trained at the Wexner Medical Center. A simple call to a dedicated National Church Residences hotline activates volunteers to come to a facility.

The new testing process allows for quicker care intervention for COVID-19 positive cases and the ability to quickly begin contact assessment to determine additional testing needs and precautionary measures like quarantine. Through donations from community partners such as Buckeye, PARRT can reach more Ohio seniors to help reduce spread of COVID for this vulnerable population.

“We appreciate the confidence that Buckeye has placed in us for this new mission of rapid testing for COVID-19,” said Mark Ricketts, President and CEO of National Church Residences. “Let’s all pray that these testing results allow campuses to reduce the spread of the virus in their part of the community. Buckeye is making it possible to save the lives of seniors in Central Ohio and impact Ohio’s Public Health Policy through this mission work.”

About National Church Residences
National Church Residences serves more than 42,000 seniors through its array of housing and health care services. The not-for-profit organization is driven by a vision of advancing better living for all seniors, enabling them to remain home for life. With 340 communities in 25 states and Puerto Rico, it is the nation’s largest not-for-profit provider of affordable senior housing and the largest manager of service coordinators. The organization also offers residential senior communities, home and community-based services, as well as permanent supportive housing for the formerly homeless and disabled. For more information, visit us at NationalChurchResidences.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.