Life Care Centers of America, a nursing home network of more than 200 facilities in 28 states, had numerous violations of COVID-19-related health standards, including at locations in Colorado.

The Washington Post reported that during a March 30 inspection of a nursing home in Pueblo, multiple employees did not wash their hands, wear face coverings or isolate residents. In cases where people were isolated, the staff sometimes left the doors open.

On March 31, an inspector at a Greeley facility noted that there was no request for the residents to wash their hands prior to eating. At a third facility near Denver, an employee did not wash her hands after assisting with a dirtied bedpan.

“We have a virus that has attacked our vulnerable populations who have co-morbidities, and that has made this extremely difficult to manage,” Tim Killian, public information liaison for Life Care, told The Post. “We need help. We need hands on the ground. We need money. We need equipment. We need doctors. And none of that is happening in a significant way anywhere in the country.”

The Post analyzed inspection reports for 26 Life Care facilities obtained from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. There were no deficiencies in 16 of the nursing homes. In Colorado, approximately 61% of COVID-19-caused deaths have occurred in senior care facilities.