We all know that nursing homes and the care they provide have been under the microscope the last few years, but you know it’s getting more serious when the White House releases official proposed legislation to reform nursing homes and target private equity ownerships.
These new proposed reforms include the following items:
- Nursing homes will be required to keep a minimum number of staff employed. This will help ensure that quality of care does not suffer, even if there are some staffing changes.
- Room overcrowding will be scrutinized and discouraged, hopefully resulting in more single-occupancy rooms in order to preserve the comfort and privacy of every resident.
- Nursing homes that provide insufficient care, abuse residents, or fall into neglectful care habits will be held accountable and must improve or face losing all taxpayer funding.
- Broader public knowledge and nursing home transparency will be encouraged and fostered so that people can make informed decisions regarding nursing home care for themselves and loved ones.
- The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) through its Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will be cracking down on nursing homes to improve the quality of care and the facilities as a whole. This is intended to target private equity ownership facilities and ensure they are providing the proper care, hire qualified care workers, and follow all regulations.
- Safeguards will be implemented to reduce misdiagnosis of mental illness, dementia, and Alzheimer’s so that fewer residents are prescribed unnecessary medication.
We are always grateful for these steps to take the nursing home problem seriously, and to improve care for those who are vulnerable within our communities. We hope these reforms will be implemented to the benefit of all nursing home residents and workers and conditions will improve.
To read more about the proposed reforms visit the official fact sheet here.
If you or a loved one have been a victim of elder abuse, call Gharibian Law (866-958-4052) today for a free consultation!
