Feds Terminate Funding for Somerset Place Nursing Home in Chicago
As the Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog reported, Somerset Place nursing home on the north side of Chicago has received a number of IDPH violations for repeated acts of violence and nursing home abuse and neglect that have compromised the safety of its residents. The nursing home was also the subject of several articles in the Chicago Tribune that highlighted the nursing home's problems and the Uptown community's concern. On Friday, federal health care officials announced that they would cut funding for the troubled nursing home. This is the first time in four years that the federal government has cut funding for a nursing home in Chicago.
All of the nursing home's 300 residents have a primary diagnosis of mental illness, and according to the Tribune 66 of these residents had criminal backgrounds. Staff members told the Tribune that insufficient staffing and training for direct care workers has created a chaotic environment where staff cannot properly supervise residents, many of whom need constant supervision. Without staffing and training, nursing home staff cannot properly supervise residents, and this leads to physical and sexual violence among residents.
According to the report, the Chicago nursing home will continue to receive Medicaid funding for 30 days, and the home has filed an emergency lawsuit to stop the CMS from pulling funding. The state health department will now look to move these residents to other Chicago nursing homes. Read full coverage of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service's decision to cut funding for Somerset Place in Chicago.
