Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Blog

Nursing home abuse and neglect has been consistently on the rise, and the rapidly aging population in the United States only makes this serious problem more worrisome. A recent study has found that from 2000-2006, there was a 22% rise in the serious reprimands nursing homes received for dangerous conditions such as medication errors, physical and sexual abuse, financial exploitation, and allowing patients to sustain injuries by falling or developing pressure sores; these are only a few examples.

The chance of this problem ceasing any time soon has been greatly decreased by the recent trend of private investment firms acquiring nursing home chains. The nursing home industry has been a sought after one as demands for long term care increase along with the aging population. Homes owned by private investment firms have proven to have conditions worse than other nursing homes. In 12 out of the 14 areas used by regulators to track ailments prevalent in nursing homes, homes owned by private investment firms scored worse than the national rates. According to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the residents at nursing homes and facilities owned by private equity are shown to suffer more from depression, loss of mobility, and inability to bathe and dress themselves. These homes also have more citations for things like inappropriately restraining residents and serving unsuitable or moldy food.

After reports of nursing home abuse and neglect, the nursing home East Peoria Gardens Health Care Center has been heavily fined by the Illinois Department of Public Health and its director's administrator's license has been suspended by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. The director left her job when the IDPH investigations began after the deaths of two patients caused by the nursing home's negligence, the admittance of patients with criminal pasts, and complaints of an atmosphere that caused fear among staff and residents. Attorney Steven M. Levin of Chicago law firm Levin & Perconti filed a lawsuit against the home on behalf of the family of a resident who fell at the home last spring, sustaining a serious head injury ultimately leading to death. Another resident choked and died as a result of the nursing home's negligence. These cases of nursing home abuse and neglect resulted in a $100,000 fine by the IDPH and other severe penalties. Its investigation found 23 nursing home code violations

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Knowing which nursing homes are bad can be valuable information for a family seeking long-term care for an elderly loved one but concerned about issues like nursing home abuse and neglect. Recently, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced the names of 54 nursing homes that had ranked as one of the worst in their state. Proper administration of medication to patients, appropriate assistance with activities of daily life and concern for the prevention of malnutrition and dehydration are examples of what inspectors look for in nursing homes. Inspectors also look for signs of nursing home abuse and neglect such as failure to maintain resident safety and prevent accidents, such as falls, infections, bed sores and other problems elderly people are susceptible to.

The list published by CMS containing the names of 54 nursing homes is actually a sample of 128 "special focus facilities", or homes that were identified as in need of more oversight. CMS says that the rest of the facilities were not identified because during the six months after being titled a "focus facility" they showed improvement. Democratic legislators, however, are demanding that all of the names be released in order to protect nursing home residents. Most nursing homes have around 6-7 deficiencies identified during inspection, but the ones on the list had twice as many or more. Unfortunately, no national standard has been set for the investigations so each state has its own parameters. An Illinois nursing home can be considered in terrible condition, but would not qualify in another state. A bill was recently introduced in the legislature to make it mandatory for CMS to publish all of the names, but the issue of discrepancies between states' standards is an issue that should be addressed by congress.

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Among the many forms of nursing home abuse and neglect, there is one common offense that is being habitually overlooked. Unfortunately, it has become a regular practice in nursing homes or long-term care facilities to sedate patients with medication instead of using them for their intended purposes. Staff often gives patients medication to make their job easier. If they are understaffed, which is by no means uncommon, or if patients are displaying a degree of behavioral issues, medication can be used to lighten the workload. Unnecessary use of psychoactive drugs can cause serious side effects. Psychiatrists may not even be prescribing many of these medications. Instead, regular doctors can write prescriptions "as needed" and leave the distribution up to the nursing home staff. Nursing homes have been fighting medical malpractice lawsuits due to the abuse of the drugs, but the percentages of patients being administered antidepressants and antipsychotics is astounding. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) calculated that 27% of patients in nursing home nationwide are being administered antipsychotics, and a shocking 52% are being administered antidepressants. In Illinois, 33.2% of patients are given antipsychotics, over 5% above the national average. 47% are given antidepressants. These figures are well above what should be a proportional amount of patients receiving medication. If you have a loved one in a nursing home, it is vital to carefully monitor the medication they may be receiving.

A new report from the UK, the Human Rights of Older People in Healthcare, has recently put forth new information regarding abuse of the elderly, specifically in nursing homes and other types of care facilities and hospitals. Politicians on the Joint Select Committee on Human Rights have announced that legal and cultural changes must be made in the UK in order to prevent further abuse. The study found that a startling amount of older people in care homes and hospitals experienced abuse, sexual abuse and assault, physical and verbal abuse, dehydration, malnutrition and neglect. Over a fifth (21%) of long term care facilities were found to be failing to meet minimum standards of privacy and dignity. It was strongly suggested that healthcare staff receive regular and targeted training in human rights and its application in long term care and assistance. Unfortunately, even proper general job training in these facilities regarding simple policies and procedures is scarce. Also suggested is an integration of inspection, regulation and complaints processes for elderly health and social care along with an overall national strategy to improve services for dementia patients and the elderly population. The importance of this study is difficult to exaggerate. The Department of Health now has a platform to work off of and will be strongly encouraged to act based on the claims of the report.

Click here to read the report

The Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act (CHAMP) has passed in the House this summer to renew the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). CHAMP provides new protections for Medicare beneficiaries and provides health insurance to 5 million uninsured children. Annual payment increases to Medicare skilled nursing facilities will be frozen for one year to help pay for expanded coverage. The freeze would have negative effects for 1.7 million nursing home residents and staff. The government has annually increased Medicare payments to nursing homes but continues to fail to improve quality standards. Some problems with this policy include undercompensation of nursing home staff (to the extent that many of them get health care coverage through Medicaid and SCHIP) and the fact that RN staffing is rapidly decreasing. As stated by the National Citizens' Coalition for Nursing Home Reform (NCCNHR):

Medicare reform would do more to ensure quality for residents than continuing to give facilities automatic annual increases. We are asking Congress to require nursing homes to report accurate staffing data, including the number of staff and what they spend on nursing; to establish a separate funding stream in Medicare for nursing costs that can't be transferred to profits; and to set minimum staffing standards for all facilities.

Please write or call your local Representative and ask him or her to support CHAMP
Email jwells@nccnhr.org with any questions

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved a 3.3% rise in Medicare payments for skilled nursing facilities for fiscal year 2008. This rise was a reflection of the fact that current rates are based on data from FY 1997. The new rates will be based on data from 2004. Approximately $690 million more will paid next year. Hopefully this rise will help skilled nursing facilities provide better and more reliable care and homes will no longer be able to blame the prevalence of nursing home abuse and neglect on lack of funding.

In order to improve the quality of food in nursing homes and long term care facilities, the allowance per resident for food rose from CAD $5.57 to CAD $7. CAD $7is equivalent to about USD $6.57. In Canada, as in the United States, the plight of elders, especially those in nursing homes or long term care facilities, is a tragically overlooked problem. Although Canada and the United States are both making efforts to advocate and support the elderly community, there is still much to be done. Particularly because the population is aging at a rate like never before. In Canada, for instance, although the allowance for nursing home residents has risen to CAD $7, prisoners are allocated CAD $11.43. While Canada seems to be making progress, neglect of the elderly population clearly does not just occur in nursing homes, but in public policy as well.

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Arbitration contracts force long term care consumers to settle abuse and neglect cases through arbitration and deny the opportunity for fair and Constitutional civil justice procedures or jury trial. Victims in the most need of compensation are significantly harmed by these agreements because the damages they deserve will be considerably limited.

Click here to view the National Citizen's Coalition for Nursing Home Reform's statement
Click here to read the testimony from the Judiciary Committee hearing

According to a recent congressional investigatory report, federal health officials impose only minimal penalties on nursing homes repeatedly cited for mistreatment of patients. The accountability office states that little seems to have changed at the nation’s worst-performing homes. The Bush administration rarely uses its authority to deny payment to homes with a history of compliance problems and typically imposes fines far less than the maximum of $10,000 a day for nursing home abuse and neglect.

For the full article.

One of the recommendations that will be included in the final report of the Bush administration’s Medicaid Commission includes moving nursing home residents into managed care plans. The proposal suggests that state should be allowed to enroll some of the sickest Medicaid recipients, including nursing home residents and people with disabilities, in managed care plans. The proposal claims that it gives states greater flexibility in altering benefits and eligibility.

The recommendations have received some criticisms. A Democratic congressman from Michigan dismissed the study panel as a “hand-picked commission stacked against working families.” Additionally, policy director of AARP adds that “in some states, flexibility means cutting benefits.” Policy director of American Association of People with Disabilities also disapproves of the recommendations because people with disabilities have not had good experience with managed care.

For the full article.

Senate and House Democrats criticized the Medicare handbook in a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt. The letter states that the Medicare handbook was used to promote Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, rather than to provide objective information. The handbook fails to inform beneficiaries that the MA plans can require higher out-of-pocket costs. The letter recommends that the information on the Medicare website be corrected to remove problematic and biased language.

For the full article.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that the “Medicare & You 2007” is now available in English and Spanish. The handbook helps people with Medicare review their coverage options. The official government handbook contains information about new policies, health plans, prescription drug plans, and rights for people with Medicare. While the information in the handbook should be very helpful, please note that the handbook has received criticism for being biased and not fully forthcoming.

For the full article.

Last year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) was shocked to find that dozens of scientists had run afoul of ethical restrictions and were making a great deal of outside income from private consulting deals with drug and biotechnology companies. New ethics rules, put in place after last year’s discovery, now bans all outside income from such companies. Nearly 40% of the scientists conducting hands-on research at NIH are now looking for other jobs. Officials emphasize that the new ethic rules will boost the agency’s credibility with the public. Certainly, with pharmaceutical companies attempting to exert influence both with researchers and doctors, NIH will gain integrity by steering clear from such monetary influence.

For the full article.

The Department of Aging recently adopted amendments to the Illinois Administrative Code for Elder Rights, expanding the current training and education requirements. The program aims to reduce elder abuse, including nursing home abuse and neglect, by making more information available to the public, tightening enforcement of current anti-abuse laws, and providing follow-up services provided to an abused, neglected, or exploited victim.

To read the Code on Elder Abuse and Neglect.

A recent study investigated the national surveillance system maintained by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The study indicated that the BLS’s estimates of work-related injuries and illnesses were greatly lower than the actual number of cases, failing to include 61 percent of reported injuries.

For the full article.

The FDA released a guide and recommendations for products that will treat chronic cutaneous ulcer and burn wounds. The guide also applies to pressure ulcers, a common symptom suffered by nursing home patients who have victims of nursing home abuse and neglect.

To view the guide.

Consumers spend too much on pharmaceuticals and the FDA is attempting to ease that burden. The FDA recently issued its final guidance in a set of formalized practices to ensure the quality of pharmaceuticals in manufacturing. Although drug companies try to circumvent FDA regulations, this guidance strengthens the FDA’s requirements for ensuring manufacturing quality. The guidance also aims to improve efficiency, which should help lower costs for consumers and prevent shortages of medicine due to manufacturing failures.

For the full article.