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National Guard Begins COVID-19 Testing At Littleton Assisted Living Facility

LITTLETON (CBS) - The National Guard moved in to the Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley in Littleton to begin widespread testing of residents at the facility that's been under a microscope, accused of failing to follow COVID-19 protocols at the skilled nursing center now called a coronavirus hot spot.

"I wonder about my mother, I haven't heard anything," said David Plummer whose 111-year-old mother Hazel, Massachusetts' oldest resident, is being cared for at the facility.

The family says repeated calls have gone unanswered. "We have no idea how they're protecting themselves or the patients and we are worried going forward," said Plummer's wife Janice.

Littleton life care
Police cruiser outside Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley (WBZ-TV)

Littleton town officials say information about the outbreak has been hard to come by. In just a five-day period, the department was called to transport 17 sickened residents to local hospitals.

Certified nursing assistant Crystal Cunneen, an employee at the skilled nursing center, claims she didn't know anything about the positive cases until she heard it on the news. She says she told her supervisor she's worried about returning to the job. "I do not want to come back until I am tested and my results are in," Counneen said. "I said I was on the infected floor the day before yesterday and I was alone."

But Sharon Grimm has a more positive assessment with her mother she says is in a more secure memory care unit. "I got a call yesterday morning letting me know she's fine, everybody in the unit is secure and nobody has tested positive," Grimm said.

In a statement Life Care Center said, "Our primary concern is for the health and safety of our residents, nursing staff and other care providers. Since testing has become more readily available, we are confident we will be better able to direct treatment, safeguard all residents, and help our nursing staff to continue to monitor the health status of our patients."

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