Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs Announces All State Veteran’s Home Residents and Employees Have Received COVID-19 Testing
Department has tested nearly 2,000 veterans and caretakers

[May 22, 2020]   Building on Governor Pritzker’s efforts to expand testing capacity statewide and the administration’s commitment to timely, responsible, and transparent communication about COVID-19, the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs (IDVA) today provided updated test results for its long-term, skilled care veteran’s homes in Anna, LaSalle, Manteno, and Quincy, Illinois.

Following guidance from the Illinois Department of Public and Health and in order to safeguard Illinois’ military heroes, every resident and employee at the veterans’ homes has been tested for COVID-19. To date:

• Illinois Veterans’ Home at Anna: Full-facility testing revealed 5 positive residents and 0 positive staff, with a handful still awaiting results.

• Illinois Veterans’ Home at LaSalle: A single resident tested positive earlier in May. The resident has since tested negative and subsequent testing revealed no additional positive residents and zero positive staff.

• Illinois Veterans’ Home at Manteno: In total, 30 residents and 19 employees have tested positive at since April. All residents were tested over the last few days; positive residents and all residents they had direct contact with have been isolated. One of the residents who tested positive for COVID-19 has passed away. All of IDVA grieves for their loss. The resident had been on hospice since 2019 due to reasons other than COVID-19. IDVA cannot share any more information about them due to privacy concerns.

• Illinois Veterans’ Home at Quincy: There are no known positive residents or staff to date. As of this morning, 475 tests have come back negative, with more residents and staff awaiting their results and additional testing of staff and contractors ongoing.

The health and wellbeing of Illinois’ veteran heroes and the devoted staff who care for them is, and always will be, the top priority of the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs. IDVA homes are working with state and local health officials to follow the latest medical guidance to combat the virus.
 

To safeguard military veterans and IDVA employees, IDVA veterans’ homes are performing health screenings of staff and residents, maintaining social distancing practices, wearing face masks, using gloves and gowns when indicated, and intensifying cleaning and disinfection protocols. All residents are encouraged to stay in their rooms and modified dining protocols have been put in place. Team IDVA is highly vigilant for signs or symptoms of COVID-19 and ready to respond swiftly, appropriately, and professionally to any potential cases.

About
The Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs provides high quality, skilled care at four veterans’ homes in Anna, LaSalle, Manteno, and Quincy, Illinois, and housing and supportive services for homeless veterans at the Prince home at Manteno. The department’s Veteran Service Officers (VSOs) typically assists more than 1,000 veterans per week in obtaining federal, local, and state veterans’ benefits. Although physical offices are temporarily closed, VSOs are still available remotely at emails and phone numbers in this list: https:// www2.illinois.gov/ veterans/ Documents/FIELD%20PHONES.pdf

[Illinois Office of Communication and Information]