COVID-19 case numbers again rising at Beaver County nursing home, site of one of worst outbreaks

BEAVER, Pa. — It’s hard to put into words the emotional toll the pandemic has taken on Billi Jo Rockey’s family.

“He’s cried, wanting to know why I haven’t been there. He doesn’t understand, he thinks he’s done something wrong. It’s heartbreaking,” Rockey said of her 77-year-old father.

The tears flow over FaceTime, as that’s the only way Rockey can see her father’s face. He’s a patient inside Brighton Rehab and Wellness Center.

“I only get in two times after 13 months, and here we are, I think this is the third month we’ve been locked out. And I usually get a call once a week that he’s been exposed,” Rockey said.

The facility had one of the worst nursing home COVID outbreaks in the country. Now those numbers are back up, with the facility reporting 14 active cases in the residents and nine active staff cases as of Wednesday.

“I feel like I’ve been robbed of 16 months of what I have left with my dad,” Rockey said.

With the doors closed, Rockey wants to know who’s bringing the virus in.

If you look at the vaccination rates provided by the state, 79.2% of Brighton Rehab residents are fully vaccinated, while the staff rate is only 41.7%. So families are left wondering if a vaccine mandate is the answer.

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“I don’t want to say people should be forced to get it if they don’t want to, but my daughter works in another facility, and they did mandate it and they have not had a case since December of last year. So that’s probably the answer,” Rockey said.

Rockey told Channel 11 mandatory testing could help, but she just wants some solution to protect her dad and see him again face-to-face.

“You just don’t know; you don’t know when you are going to get back in. You don’t know if the last time you see him was the last time I ever got to see him,” Rockey said.

To date, the facility reports 417 resident COVID cases and 217 staff COVID cases.

Channel 11 did reach out to the facility about the family’s concerns but did not hear back.

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