Many vaccinated elders in Minnesota still avoid grandchildren, public spaces, and exercise – twin cities

Almost a year after the first seniors in Minnesota began receiving COVID vaccines, many senior residents of the state are still having to visit friends and family – especially unvaccinated grandchildren – or venture back into public spaces and resume their pre-pandemic exercise routine which raises concerns with experts about health threats related to isolation and depression.

At the same time, deaths related to COVID in nursing homes soared towards the end of the summer, a dire reminder that the pandemic is still out of sight.

These are the results of two new studies published by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota that surveyed seniors nationwide this summer and AARP Minnesota, which maintains a COVID-19 dashboard that shows the Centers for federally reported COVID data Medicare and Medicaid tracks services on a monthly basis.

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield study found that while 90 percent of the state’s seniors were vaccinated, some seniors “return to normal” more slowly.

From July 26 to August 13, researchers surveyed 500 Minnesota residents aged 64 or over who had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine – Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson.

ONE IN FIVE SENIORS HAS TO VISIT FAMILY, FRIENDS

Overall, one in five vaccinated seniors has not yet visited family or friends, according to the results. Two out of five vaccinated seniors in the survey said they were uncomfortable with unvaccinated grandchildren.

The majority of vaccinated seniors said they were unhappy with their health, and a third of regular exercisers from pre-pandemic times were still waiting to return to an exercise program.

On the flip side, two-thirds of seniors who were vaccinated said they had regular personal interactions with others and were now living a more active lifestyle than they did earlier in the pandemic.

More than half of the vaccinated seniors reported having returned to public spaces such as shopping malls and restaurants.

Among the vaccinated seniors, 95 percent said they were still following at least one COVID-19 precaution, the survey found, such as avoiding crowds or wearing a mask.

Although Blue Cross health experts recognized the dangers to seniors from groundbreaking COVID cases, they found that previous studies have linked social isolation and loneliness to potentially life-threatening conditions such as dementia, heart disease, depression, and anxiety.

“The vaccine has been a liberator for many Minnesota seniors as they return to the activities they have missed most, but the pandemic is definitely taking its toll,” said Dr. Mark Steffen, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, in a written statement.

“Socializing outdoors … is a great way to keep in touch with friends and family,” he said. “But as breakthrough infections rise, it’s important that seniors continue to protect themselves and others by wearing masks indoors in areas with high COVID-19 transmission, even if they are vaccinated.”

92 PERCENT OF CARE RESIDENTS vaccinated

On a monthly basis, AARP publishes federal data on its online dashboard reported by Medicare or Medicaid certified nursing homes that do not include assisted living or other long-term care facilities.

AARP Minnesota reported that vaccination rates among residents and employees of the state’s nursing home have increased, with 92 percent of residents and 70 percent of employees being fully vaccinated on September 19, up from 91 percent and 68 percent in mid-August.

Still, nursing homes have not been immune to COVID outbreaks and groundbreaking cases. In Minnesota, COVID-related deaths rose from 1 in 5,000 nursing home residents to 1 in 1,000 residents between August and September.

That’s a five-fold increase. Nationally, COVID deaths in nursing homes have doubled over the same period.

The dashboard, compiled by the AARP Public Policy Institute in collaboration with the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University, Ohio, is available online at aarp.org/nursinghomedashboard.

Other results show that chronic staffing problems persist in Minnesota nursing homes. 57 percent of the facilities reported a shortage of nurses or auxiliary staff in the four weeks up to September 19, at the level of the highest shortage since the COVID wave last winter.

Nationwide, more than half of the nursing staff in nursing homes have now been vaccinated in every federal state. AARP has urged nursing homes and long-term care facilities to require staff and residents to be vaccinated against coronavirus, and the Biden government has announced plans to require vaccination for staff in nursing homes and most healthcare facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid payments.