There are 42,000 assisted living facilities across the United States. More than 2,000 of them are in Arizona. They have received no federal dollars since the coronavirus pandemic.
Now, the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living are asking the Department of Health and Human Services and FEMA for $5 billion in emergency funding.
"They are not set up to have a lot of [personal protective equipment] on-hand first off, They also don't have the necessary staffing in place and they don't have isolation in place," said David Voepel with the Arizona Health Care Association.
Unlike nursing homes, assisted living facilities have not received federal dollars for personal protective equipment or prioritization for testing. The funds also would be used to hire staff, provide overtime or give incentive pay.
