Visits at New York nursing homes and long-term care facilities will be allowed on a limited basis for facilities that have been free of new COVID-19 cases for at least 28 days, Health Commissioner Howard Zucker on Friday announced. 

The guidance will take effect Wednesday, July 15. 

There will also be limits and other guidelines put into place meant to safeguard against the spread of the virus. The move lifts a ban on visitors to nursing homes that has been in place since March, and comes after more than 6,000 nursing home residents died in New York during the height of the pandemic. 

Visitors will be limited to two people at a time and must undergo temperature checks, wear face coverings and socially distance. One of the visitors must be 18 years old or older. 

Nursing homes will also be required to send their visitation plans to the state Department of Health for review.

Each facility will be limited to 10 percent of residens receiving guests. The 28-day guideline of COVID-free residents is in line with a recommendation from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The full guidance was posted Friday by state officials.

The annoucement also bookends a week in which health officials released a report Monday blaming asympotmatic staffers and visitors for spreading the virus in nursing homes, not a controversial policy that required the facilities to receive discharged COVID patients.

The report has fueled a push for an independent investigation into the issue; state lawmakers have promised to conduct hearings.

“With the knowledge we now have about how COVID-19 came into nursing homes – mainly through asymptomatic staff and visitors through no fault of their own – it is critical that as we resume visitations to these facilities we do it in a smart and cautious way to ensure the health and safety of residents and staff,” Zucker said.

“We will continue to closely monitor the situation in each facility, and make adjustments based on the facts and data moving forward. I know how painful it has been for residents of these facilities to endure such a long period of time without seeing family and loved ones, and my hope is that this adjustment to the visitation policy will provide some comfort to everyone.”