JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Monday marked four years since the World Health Organization declared the global outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic.

Among the most vulnerable populations affected were those living in long-term care.

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the country proved woefully unprepared for a pandemic and lockdowns ensued. But as weeks turned into months, the effects of isolation also began to take a toll.

Florida’s Mary Daniel became the driving force behind the movement to reopen facilities, after taking a job as a dishwasher at her husband’s assisted living facility in Jacksonville.

“We knew that COVID was deadly. Certainly inside these facilities with a vulnerable population,” Daniel said. “But isolation was killing people too, and we had to do something about that.”

Daniel helped form the grassroots organization Caregivers for Compromise and soon after, joined a task force formed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to safely reopen facilities. About six months into the pandemic, Florida became one of the first states to do so.

Daniel continued her advocacy worth by pushing for the passage of the "No Patient Left Alone Act," which was signed into law in 2022. Daniel said with the support of lawmakers from Texas and Connecticut, members of Caregivers 4 Compromise are now lobbying for the passage of similar legislation at the federal level.

Daniel’s husband Steve, whom she fought so hard to see at the onset of the pandemic, has since passed away. Daniel said the time she was able to spend with him after the long-term care lockdown was lifted was invaluable.

“I empower caregivers to boldly advocate for loved ones so they can look back with no regrets,” Daniel said. “And that’s the life I’m living now and I’m extremely grateful for that.”