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Huffington Post – ‘Gross Negligence’ By Roberta Place Led To U.K. Variant Outbreak: Lawsuit

A $50-million class-action lawsuit against the owners of Roberta Place alleges gross negligence led to a devastating COVID-19 outbreak that infected all but one resident and claimed more than 60 lives in January.

Jarlette Health Services failed to address a pattern of mismanagement, short staffing and repeated health and safety violations, says the statement of claim filed Friday.

“They were reckless, irresponsible, and neglectful of their responsibilities to provide high quality and compassionate care to the residents and staff of Roberta Place Long Term Care Home,” the claim alleges.

“They demonstrated an aggravated, flagrant and careless pandemic response plan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The Barrie, Ont. home did not plan for an outbreak, or provide employees, residents and visitors with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), screening or testing for the virus, or “even basic” acute respiratory infection surveillance, the claim says.

[This article was originally published on HuffingtonPost.ca.
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