UHS looks forward to allowing visitors soon

People will soon be allowed to visit their loved ones in hospitals and group homes again, according to a new order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

We at UHS will be studying the visitor plan that will be issued by the New York State Department of Health to determine the new guidelines for admitting visitors to UHS facilities across the Southern Tier.

Until the new plan is in place, we will remain under our current policy, which prohibits most visits. The updated policy will be announced to the public on UHS' website, nyuhs.org.

The move by Gov. Cuomo comes as New York continues to see lower hospitalizations and deaths due to COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. Visits had been banned for nearly three months.

The new policy for visiting will include a limit on how long you can visit someone, rules for wearing masks and other personal protective equipment, and a requirement for having a temperature and symptom screening before your visit.

UHS and other hospitals in New York will still have the right to restrict visits at their own discretion.

The reopening to visitors affects only hospitals and group homes. It is still unclear when visitors will be allowed to return to nursing homes.