Assisted living communities and other congregate living settings would change how they report COVID-19 cases under a proposal by the Alabama Department of Public Health.
Under the proposed rule change, providers would be required to report all positive and suspected cases of COVID-19 to the county or state health department within 24 hours. The proposal would place COVID-19 in the same immediate/urgent reporting category as measles, influenza, Legionnaires’ disease, polio, rabies and tuberculosis, among other infectious diseases.
The comment period on the proposal, which was released in November, ends Jan. 4.
The new rule would remove some mandatory reporting requirements for medical professionals that were implemented during the height of the pandemic, but it would retain mandatory reporting of COVID-19 cases for assisted living communities and residential care and skilled nursing facilities, among other settings.
The public health agency recently held a hearing on the proposed change, drawing criticism from some who believe that the rule will infringe on privacy rights due to the sharing of personal information with the state. But at least one senior living industry representative, Assisted Living Association of Alabama Executive Director Kelley Mitchell, said she saw nothing concerning with the proposed changes.
During the hearing, Burnestine Talor, ADPH medical officer for disease control and prevention, said that the rule would “improve the timeliness of reporting, provide clarification, remove antiquated references and allow the department to better serve and protect the public.” He said that the rule also would support public health efforts to monitor disease trends, detect and respond to outbreaks, and help reduce the spread of disease.
