Sen. Paul Schimpf (R-Waterloo) showed grave concern at the recent joint Illinois House-Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee hearing regarding the Legionnaires' disease outbreak at the Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy.
“This is a bipartisan issue and everyone up here today is committed to making sure you all get the support you need to support our veterans,” Schmipf said after a four-hour long meeting on the outbreak that has killed 13 people since 2015.
Beginning his inquiry, Schmipf addressed Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs Director Erica Jeffries.
“Director Jeffries I want to note the irony that nine years ago when you and I were working together at the Pentagon, we were working on water issues and here we are again talking about water issues,” Schmipf said.
Schimpf wanted to know more about how the outbreak was handled on Aug. 21, 2015, when the first two deaths were reported, and why residents were not moved immediately after to prevent further deaths.
“Was that even considered and why did you opt not to go that route,” Schmipf asked Jeffries and expert witness Illinois Department of Public Health Director Nirav Shah.
Jeffries said though they considered relocation, even seeking the capacity of neighboring health care facilities, 40 percent of the Quincy population suffers from dementia which could be detrimental during relocation.
“The idea of moving was not one we wanted to pursue,” Jeffries said. “It is a tremendous risk to moving a population like this.”
Shah said after consulting with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, relocation was not an option due to a condition called “transfer trauma,” which risks falls and other health care related conditions for elderly residents.
Schmipf then asked CDC Director for Epidemiological Science Sam Posner to join Jeffries and Shah at the witness table and explain how Legionella can be disturbed by excavation.
“One of the challenges of improving the plumbing system and tearing things up is not only are you disturbing the dirt, but you are disturbing the pipes and it makes those loose with the biofilm, creating more of an opportunity for Legionella to grow and spread in existing plumbing system,” Posner said.
At the end of the meeting, the senator insisted on knowing why it took more than a day to find a deceased resident’s body who died from the disease, with the most horrific aspect of media reports regarding a women’s death being unnoticed.
“I think you are going to have to do a little bit better than saying we disagree with that reporting,” Schmipf said. “I would like to know how long it took to find her body.
According to Jeffries, the resident was in independent living and those rooms and residents' whereabouts are not checked as often as skilled care residents. Clearly unhappy with the answer, Schmipf asked the experts if knowing what they know now, would they have handled the entire matter differently.
They answered no.
“My personal frustration was that I thought the matter was taken care of after the outbreak in 2015," Schmipf said. "I realize now that is on me. I didn’t know as much as I should have and that is why I ask that you let us know what support you need from us,” Schmipf said.
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