NASHVILLE, Tenn. — An 11th death from the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing has been confirmed Wednesday.
Sumner Regional Medical Center confirms the 11th patient has died after a COVID-19 outbreak at the Gallatin facility last month.
Officials say more than 70 residents and 30 staff members tested positive for COVID-19.
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The death toll at a Gallatin nursing home that evacuated over a Coronavirus outbreak has risen.
As of Monday, eight people are now dead from the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing, Sumner Regional Medical Center confirmed with News4, a WBIR sister station in Nashville.
Sumner County Mayor Anthony Holt told News4 he and other area officials expressed big concerns about residents being allowed to move back inside the center less than a week after the outbreak.
Now families of residents and employees who test COVID positive are filing a lawsuit against the center.
"This could be my grandfather, your grandmother. These people deserve the best protection possible that they didn't get at this facility," said attorney Clint Kelly, who represents at least 20 families in the case.
"There were employees going to the facility who were sick who had symptoms consistent with COVID-19 who did not want to work that day and asked to go home and were told if they went home not to bother coming back," said Kelly.
In a press conference during the evacuation process, Tennessee state officials said it was investigating the outbreak, but found no cause for citation yet.
Kelly doesn't agree, saying after talking to families, he believes a number of procedures to protect patients were not followed leading to over 100 people getting infected.
"So there's all these different sources for infection or exposure to the facility," said Kelly.
News4 requested comment from Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing but have not heard back at this time.
