COVID-19 cases and death in nursing homes: the role of racial/ethnic composition of facilities and their communities

Cai, Shubing; Yan, Di; Intrator, Orna

Objectives To examine the extent to which the racial/ethnic composition of nursing homes (NHs) and their communities affects the likelihood of COVID-19 cases and death in NHs; and whether and how the relationship between NH characteristics and COVID-19 cases and death varies with the racial/ethnic composition of the community in which a NH is located. Design Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services (CMS) Nursing Home COVID-19 data were linked with other NH- or community-level data (e.g. Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reporting, Minimum Data Set, Nursing Home Compare, and the American Community Survey). Setting and Participants NHs with more than 30 occupied beds (N=13,123) with weekly reported NH COVID-19 records between the weeks of 06/07/2020 and 08/23/2020. Measurements/ Model Weekly indicators of any new COVID-19 cases and any new deaths (outcome variables) were regressed on the percent of Black/Hispanic residents in a NH, stratified by the percent of Blacks/Hispanics in the community in which the NH was located. A set of linear probability models with NH random-effects and robust standard errors were estimated, accounting for other covariates. Results The racial/ethnic composition of NHs and their communities were both associated with the likelihood of having COVID-19 cases and death in NHs. The racial/ethnic composition of the community played an independent role in the likelihood of COVID-19 cases/death in NHs, even after accounting for the COVID-19 infection rate in the community (i.e. daily cases per 1000 people in the county). Moreover, the racial/ethnic composition of a community modified the relationship between NH characteristics (e.g. staffing) and the likelihoods of COVID-19 cases/death. Conclusions and Implications To curb the COVID-19 outbreaks in NHs and protect vulnerable populations, efforts may be especially needed in communities with a higher concentration of racial/ethnic minorities. Efforts may also be needed to reduce structural racism and address social risk factors to improve quality of care and population health in communities of color.