Month: <span>June 2011</span>

Last month, we posted several blogs about the growth of nursing home abuse in South Florida. After an investigative report by the Miami Herald, lawmakers and government agencies took notice of the problems in nursing homes and assisted-living facilities (ALFs) throughout Florida. In response to these findings, the state is cracking down on violators.

The Agency for Health Care Administration has taken several measures to put an end to violations by nursing homes and ALFs. Governor Rick Scott announced that the agency imposed $125,000 in sanctions to 46 nursing home abusers. It is also taking away thousands in tax dollars from a chain of Tampa ALFs.

As the Miami Herald reported, three chains of Mapleway Communities will no longer be able to bill for their services under Medicaid; a harsh penalty which is available to the state under Florida law. This will be a big blow to the ALF chain, since facilities such as these will have to resort to making residents pay out of pocket or through private insurance. The governor’s office also noted, according to the Herald, that its website FloridaHealthFinder.gov will provide more updated information on ALFs and nursing homes.

We hope that the actions by our state will serve as a wake-up call to offenders. As attorneys, we will continue to do our part to keep you informed of the developments in battling nursing home negligence and fight for the rights of victims of abuse.

Last week, we posted about an investigation in May by the Miami Herald on the deplorable state of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in South Florida and throughout the state. Now it seems that the current state of these facilities has caught the attention of two of Florida’s lawmakers.

The Herald reported that Florida Senator and Senate minority leader Chris Smith, after an inspection of Briarwood Manor in Lauderhill, contacted senator Ronda Storms with plans to join forces with other lawmakers to put a stop to the violations throughout Florida’s nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.

Smith, along with the Department of Children and Families, the Attorney General’s Office, the Agency for Health Care and Administration and several other agencies, swept through four facilities in the Cannon Point in Lauderhill, which is home to the highest concentration of assisted-living facilities in Florida. Some of the findings at these facilities, including Briarwood Manor and Shalom Manor, included roach and rodent infestations in two of the facilities, broken furniture, and a 55-year-old man with an untreated swollen leg.

According to the Herald, Smith noted that he never knew that these facilities posed such a threat until the Herald’s investigation. He was also upset to learn that Briarwood gets hundreds of thousands of dollars to house its residents and that some of the tax dollars meant for residents were not being appropriated to them.

We applaud the steps that our lawmakers are taking to ensure the safety of our senior citizens. We hope that our Legislature and our law enforcement continue to work together to crack down on nursing home neglect and abuse. As attorneys, we will also do our part to ensure that the rights of the victims of these heinous acts are protected.

We have all seen the stereotypical scenario in movies, TV, and in real life: after years of working up north, a retired couple moves to Florida to spend their golden years on golf courses and sandy beaches. South Florida is a great place to live, vacation and retire. Many of us have parents and grandparents who, after some time, require the care and comfort of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.

Nursing home abuse has been a hot topic for exposés around the country and, as the Orlando Sentinel and the Miami Herald reported last month, it is a growing concern in Florida. Both the Sentinel and the Herald highlighted several incidents of nursing home abuse, including: a 71-year-old in South Florida who died from burns in a bathtub; a 75-year-old priest with dementia in Pinellas county who wandered off unsupervised and was found in a lake with bodily injuries from alligators; and an assisted-living facility owner in the Panhandle who threatened residents with a stick and refused them food and drugs. Both the Sentinel and the Miami Herald also note recent attempts by Florida legislature to impose restrictions on nursing home lawsuits and restrictions on Florida’s nursing home watchdogs. (Note: the Herald also includes a 3-part video on its investigation).

The Herald’s 3-part series on its investigation – which spanned one year and included examination of state inspections, reports and files, as well as interviews with operators and residents – noted that the “Agency for Health Care Administration, which oversees the state’s 2,850 assisted-living facilities, has failed to monitor shoddy operators, investigate dangerous practices or shut down the worst offenders.” The findings were quite appalling: (1) regulators could have shut down 70 facilities who committed violations, but only closed 7; (2) facilities are frequently found in violation for using restraints (tranquilizers, ropes, closets), but not punished; and (3) almost once a month, residents die from neglect, but arrests are rarely made.

Choosing the appropriate nursing home facility is a very difficult task. Though most rely on reviews and ratings of a facility, word of mouth and reputation, you can never be too careful when entrusting your loved ones to the care of a nursing home. As attorneys, we feel it is our privilege and our duty to represent those who have been abused or neglected by nursing homes. If you or a loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse, consult with a Florida nursing home attorney today.