Bad nursing home care may soon result in stiffer fines and penalties
U.S. Senators indicated yesterday that they intend to introduce legislation which will provide stiffer fines for bad nursing home care and require clear ownership information when nursing homes are purchased by private equity firms. The move comes in response to recent reports about problems which often occur with the quality of nursing home care at facilities which are purchased by private investors.
On Thursday, at a hearing of the Senate’s Special Committee on Aging, Sen. Herb Kohl stated that, “under the current system, nursing homes that are not providing good care can escape penalty from the government while they slip in and out of compliance with federal regulation.”
Under new legislation which will be proposed by Sen. Kohl, a Wisconsin Democat, and Sen. Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will have more enforcement authority. They will be able to hand out higher fines and intervene to ensure resident safety when there is evidence of bad nursing home care. The bill will also require clear ownership information for facilities, to combat the attempts by many ownership groups which try avoid liability for bad care when residents pursue nursing home lawsuits.
In September, the New York Times published a report which detailed how nursing home care deteriorates after many private investment firms purchase a facility. Quality of care which is below the minimum legal requirements is often provided when the ownership groups cut budgets and reduce staffs to increase profits. The report indicated that privately acquired nursing homes ranked below the national standard in 12 of 14 qualifying areas, even though many of the facilities were above the national average before being acquired by private investors.
The investors who make the decisions that increase profits, but also result in more serious and life-threatening nursing home neglect injuries, often attempt to escape accountability for their actions. Convoluted business structures are set up which separate assets, such as real estate, from the operations of the facilities. This is done to protect the investment group and make sure that they do not suffer substantial losses when their negligent care results in a serious injury.
NURSING HOME CARE LAWYERS
The nursing home lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. represent individuals who suffer injuries as a result of bad care at facilities nationwide. Nursing home lawsuits not only obtain compensation for injuries suffered by bad care, but also help ensure that proper standards of care are followed in the industry. If you or a loved one suffered an injury as a result of bad nursing home care, find out what legal rights may be available by requesting a free consultation and claim evaluation.
