WILLOUGHBY, Ohio — Darlene Dryer and her husband have spent some time recently picketing outside of Breckenridge Village, the nursing home where her 95-year-old mother lives. She loves the care her mom gets, but she’s heartbroken she can’t see her.
"For an hour or two, I’d just sit with her," she said. "Now I haven’t seen her for three and half months. She has declined drastically because I have not seen her."
Dryer is upset that other parts of the state are re-opening while she’s still waiting to get inside Breckenridge.
"And it's inhumane that these people have lived their life, their family life raising children and grandchildren, and now they’re dying alone," she lamented.
Elderly advocate Steve Piskor says families willing to get tested and sanitize should be able to see their loved ones.
"When you walk through a nursing home, you’re not walking through every resident's room," he said. "You’re really socially distancing. You’re going from the front door to your loved one’s room."
Dryer says she hopes the state takes action soon, before it’s too late.
"I think the governor should look into this and change the order, change the way these facilities are being run," she said.
Darlene tells 3News she’s considering picketing in Columbus to try and get Gov. Mike DeWine's attention.
3NEWS INVESTIGATES: 70% of Ohio's COVID-19 deaths are nursing home patients