Head Of Arizona Health Department Says State's 2,500 Assisted Living Facilities Will Eventually Be Tested For COVID-19

By Kathy Ritchie
Published: Friday, May 22, 2020 - 8:35am
Updated: Friday, May 22, 2020 - 1:47pm

Arizona Department of Health Services Director Dr. Cara Christ
Arizona Republic/Pool
Arizona Department of Health Services Director Dr. Cara Christ speaks at a press conference on May 12, 2020 in Phoenix.

When the state first announced it would be testing residents and staff at Arizona’s 147 medicare- and medicaid-certified nursing facilities, it did not address the people who live and work in assisted living facilities.

Dr. Cara Christ is the head of the state department of health. At Wednesday's press conference, she said residential facilities are next on the list for testing.

"So these will be assisted living facilities or centers," Christ said. "Those are facilities that have 11 or more residents living at them, and then assisted living homes, which is the majority of our assisted living facilities. And those have 10 or less residents, so we'll be working with them."

According to the American Health Care Association, an organization that represents skilled nursing homes and assisted living facilities, more than 28,000 tests will be administered in this current round of testing.

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