Nursing homes were one of the deadliest places for COVID-19 outbreaks in Louisiana, but now new cases of the virus are drastically dropping as the majority of residents are vaccinated.

NOLA.com reported all nursing homes in Louisiana only had 17 new cases of the coronavirus in last week's Louisiana Department of Health update. It's the seventh week fewer than 30 cases have been reported by the state's 275 nursing home facilities.

Nearly 3,000 Louisiana nursing home residents have died from the virus. COVID levels have now dropped to the lowest levels in the state since the beginning of the pandemic. This drastic drop in new cases has allowed vaccinated family members to start visiting their loved ones in many of the nursing homes around the state.

The decline began in late December and early January because of the first rollout of the vaccines. The LDH has reported over 80% of nursing home residents in the state are now vaccinated.

Tulane University epidemiologist Susan Hassig says these numbers show the residents at nursing homes around the state are reaching herd immunity. She went on to say she hopes what we are seeing in nursing home facilities will begin to happen with the general public, as many people are getting vaccinated.

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