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LTC Liability Monitor

A weekly e-mail newsletter for SNFs and Long-Term Care professionals that delivers the latest news in reducing risks and avoiding the legal headaches associated with them.

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LTC Liability Monitor

Issue 49, December 28, 2004

• State Supreme Court limits families' ability to sue

  A decision by the Florida Supreme Court last week limited a family's ability to sue for neglect or...

• Alzheimer's association proposes more education for aides

  The Massachusetts chapter of the Alzheimer's Association has filed legislation that would require...

• $108K settlement in pneumonia death

  An Arkansas skilled nursing facility has reached a settlement with the family of a mentally...

Issue 48, December 21, 2004

• Whistleblower suit costs nursing home $1.6M

  A lawsuit brought by two whistleblowers against a Chicago nursing home alleging neglect, abuse, and...

• Fired ALF employees file discrimination suit

  Two women have sued a Fortuna, CA assisted living facility for discrimination after they were...

• Tennessee fire settlement records sealed

  The records of 29 lawsuits settled between a Tennessee nursing home and families of the victims of...

Issue 47, December 15, 2004

• Attorney General proposes tougher penalties for abuse

  Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly is proposing legislation that would raise penalties...

• Backlog in Medicaid applications hurts nursing homes

  A backlog in Medicaid applications is pushing Colorado nursing homes into a financial crisis...

• State passes tort reform

  The state of Ohio has passed tort reform putting a $500,000 cap on "pain and suffering" awards...

Issue 46, December 8, 2004

• Nursing home residents sue new owners

  A group of Iowa nursing home residents filed a lawsuit against the new owners of their facility and...

• Former employees sue over home closure

  Six former employees sued an Illinois nursing home management company over an alleged violation of...

• ALF settles lawsuit over unpaid refunds

  A Huntington, WV assisted living facility has settled a lawsuit with the state alleging non-payment...

Issue 45, November 30, 2004

• Whistle-blower lawsuit settled

  A Chicago nursing home has settled a lawsuit brought by two whistle-blowers alleging Medicaid...

• California not complying with Supreme Court ruling

  An investigation by the U.S. Justice Department found California's "one size fits all" elderly...

• Malnutrition and dehydration levels examined

  Dehydration and malnutrition killed at least 13,890 nursing home residents in the three year period...

Issue 44, November 16, 2004

• Labor Department settles mismanagement suit

  The U.S. Labor Department has settled a lawsuit with a family owned Massachusetts nursing home over...

• No cap on punitive damages in Arkansas

  Arkansas lawmakers will not revisit an earlier attempt to limit damages awarded in lawsuits against...

• Judge dismisses First Amendment lawsuit

  A Wisconsin judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a former nursing home social worker who alleged...

Issue 43, November 10, 2004

• Neglect case puts DHS guardianship under scrutiny

  The Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) is considering creating a list of facilities where...

• Amputee sues nursing home

  An 80-year-old woman is suing a Napa, CA, nursing home for negligence and elder abuse after she had...

• Chain refuses patient and worker bill of rights

  Despite heavy pressure from a local clergy group, a nursing home in Massachusetts will not adopt a...

Issue 42, November 3, 2004

• Mandatory family notification debated

  The possibility of the Providence, RI, Health Department taking over the notification of family...

• Judge clears administrator sued by medical director

  A New Hampshire judge ruled in favor of a nursing home administrator who was sued by his facility's...

• Nursing home study results published

  In a study of 132 nursing homes in Missouri, 35 percent failed at least once to prevent an...

Issue 41, October 27, 2004

• State may take over financially troubled facility

  Rhode Island's health director Dr. Patricia Nolan is invoking a never-used statute in an attempt to...

• Wrongful death suit settled in Arkansas

  The family of a 91-year-old woman who died as a result of wrong medication is set to receive...

• Missouri plans new nursing home laws

  Missouri lawmakers plan to introduce new legislation after an analysis of 132 Kansas City-area...

Issue 40, October 21, 2004

• Settlement reached in Tennessee nursing home fire

  A Murfreesboro, TN-based nursing home company settled 28 of the 32 lawsuits stemming from a...

• OIG outlines 2005 Work Plan

  The Office of Inspector General (OIG) intends to find out whether skilled nursing facilities (SNFs...

• For-profit facilities cited more often

  Nursing home inspection records in Kansas and Missouri found for-profit facilities received 40...

Issue 39, October 14, 2004

• Housing agency settles federal discrimination suit

  The Vancouver Housing Authority will pay $100,000 to settle discrimination charges filed with the...

• Resident-on-resident abuse a growing problem

  After resident-on-resident violence resulted in death at a Connecticut nursing home last month...

• Workplace language policy sparks controversy

  Certified nursing assistants and some residents at Medical Center Nursing Facility at San Antonio...

Issue 38, October 7, 2004

• ALF owner convicted on neglect charges

  A Marathon, WI County jury found the owner of a Kronenwetter, WI-based assisted living facility...

• ALF owner convicted on neglect charges

  A Marathon, WI County jury found the owner of a Kronenwetter, WI-based assisted living facility...

• Beverly settles lawsuit with shareholders

  Nursing home operator Beverly Enterprises Inc. will be stepping up its corporate compliance efforts...

• U.S. faces flu vaccine shortage after major supplier closes

  America's supply of flu vaccine was cut in half on Tuesday, as British regulators suspended drug...

Issue 37, September 29, 2004

• One-third of Texas SNFs remain uninsured

  Although Texas offers skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) financial assistance with liability...

• State to help residents’ families get refunds

  West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw is suing a long-term care facility for allegedly...

Issue 36, September 23, 2004

• HHS launches program to address liability crisis

  In an effort to provide litigation relief to the healthcare industry, Health and Human Services...

• Nursing home explosion lawsuit nets $15 million

  Five companies will pay a total of $15 million to settle a lawsuit related to a deadly nursing home...

• Judge orders state to halt placements at suspect facilities

  Oklahoma nursing homes being investigated by the state Department of Human Services (DHS) may see a...

Issue 35, September 16, 2004

• Advocat settles for $1.3 million

  After a series of investigations and lawsuits plagued 13 Arkansas nursing homes operated by Advocat...

• Case dismissed against employers of murderous nurse

  A New Jersey Superior Court judge dismissed lawsuits against three hospitals and one nursing home...

• CA facility to be unionized after two-year struggle

  After a two-year delay, workers at Sonoma [CA] Health Care Center will join the Service Employees...

Issue 34, September 8, 2004

• HUD amends liability insurance guidelines

  Nursing homes receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD...

• Nursing home settles case of fatally burned resident

  A Georgia nursing home owned by Beverly Enterprises settled for an undisclosed amount a wrongful...

• FDA seeks comment on bed safety measures

  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wants healthcare providers and hospital bed...

Issue 33, September 1, 2004

• CMS to crack down on fraud

  CMS is taking strides to combat fraud and abuse by expanding its program integrity initiatives, the...

• Lawsuits filed in anticipation of Mississippi tort reform

  Before the enactment of a law limiting jury awards in civil cases, some plaintiffs' attorneys in...

• SNF settles lawsuit over feeding tube death

  Care Center of Rossmoor in Walnut Creek, CA, answered to regulators and family members after nurses...

Issue 32, August 26, 2004

• New fire safety bill calls for federal funding

  Upon introducing this week the Nursing Facility Fire Safety Act of 2004, House Representative John...

• Nursing home operator sued for overtime pay

  In anticipation of the federal Department of Labor's (DOL) new rules governing overtime pay--which...

• Alabama SNF to boost ergonomics efforts, sidestep citation

  An Alabama skilled nursing facility (SNF) entered into an agreement with the Occupational Safety...

Issue 31, August 19, 2004

• New York passes assisted living reform

  State legislators approved a bill on August 12 to increase supervision and limit who can provide...

• Minnesota commission to address sex offender policies

  Following allegations that sex offenders housed at a Minnesota nursing home assaulted other...

• Facilities cope with hurricane evacuations

  Hurricane Charley forced some Florida long-term care facilities to put their evacuation plans into...

Issue 30, August 12, 2004

• 14 indicted in multi-million dollar Medicare fraud

  Last week, federal agents charged 14 people for defrauding Medicare of more than $8 million through...

• More risk retention groups form for nursing homes

  The number of risk retention groups (RRGs) forming to cover healthcare providers-including nursing...

• ALF charged in resident-on-resident abuse case

  A Massachusetts assisted living facility (ALF) was charged last month with staff negligence in a...

Issue 29, August 4, 2004

• Feeding assistant rule to be challenged in court

  A class action lawsuit over the use of feeding assistants was filed this week on behalf of nursing...

• State law strengthens nursing home accountability

  A new Massachusetts law promotes the creation of another type of group that nursing homes must...

• Former SNF employee files wrongful termination suit

  A former skilled nursing facility (SNF) social worker claims she was fired last year after...

Issue 28, July 28, 2004

• Court reduces 'grossly excessive' award on malpractice case

  An appeals court ruled a jury's $5 million punitive damages award in a malpractice lawsuit against...

• Oklahoma nursing homes lose major insurance carrier

  The majority of Oklahoma’s nursing homes will be searching for new liability insurance due to...

• Deadly nursing home fire spurs lawsuit

  The family of a resident who was injured last year in a fire at Greenwood Health Center in...

Issue 27, July 21, 2004

• GAO finds weakness in nursing home fire safety

  Following its investigation of last year’s nursing home fires in Hartford, CT, and Nashville...

• Cheney supports cap on malpractice awards

  Speaking at the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo on Monday, Vice President Dick Cheney promoted a...

• Oklahoma health officials threaten SNF’s licensure

  A two-week investigation at Hominy [OK] Nursing Home revealed serious care problems that prompted...

Issue 26, July 14, 2004

• Senate hearing to address LTC liability crisis

  In response to soaring liability insurance costs for physicians in nursing homes, the U.S. Senate...

• Advocacy group seeks to warn of arbitration

  As more of the state’s nursing homes include arbitration agreements in their admissions...

• Grassley calls for survey crackdown

  Congress’s long-time nursing home watchdog Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) called for...

Issue 25, July 8, 2004

• Nursing home fined $20,000 for improper transfer

  Illinois health officials fined Apostolic Christian Home of Eureka $20,000 after a resident died...

• Long shifts increase medication error risk

  Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing confirm nurses working long...

• State sues ALF for multiple care problems

  The West Virginia Office of Health Facility Licensure and Certification (OHFLAC) last week sued an...

Issue 24, July 1, 2004

• Nursing home faces False Claims charges

  A Warminster, PA nursing home faces charges filed by the federal government under the False Claims...

• Confusion reigns over sex offenders in SNFs

  The Minnesota Attorney General (AG) clarified to the Corrections Department that it is legal to...

• Alabama joins Tennessee in full sprinkler system push

  Alabama nursing homes must install full sprinkler systems during the next few years, announced the...

Issue 23, June 24, 2004

• OIG: Alabama too slow in handling abuse complaints

  Alabama’s survey agency falls short when it comes to investigating, tracking, and monitoring...

• Tennessee Governor signs nursing home sprinkler bill

  Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen last week signed a bill requiring sprinkler systems in nursing...

• Troubled Minnesota SNF fined $39,000

  A Minnesota skilled nursing facility (SNF) being sued by the state's attorney general for housing...

Issue 22, June 16, 2004

• Court rules SNF can enforce arbitration contracts

  A Florida appeals court upheld contracts requiring residents to settle disputes with their SNFs...

• Maryland governor pushes for medical malpractice reform

  With malpractice insurance rates slated to soar over the summer, Maryland Governor Robert L...

• Confidential settlement in wrongful death case

  After a seven-day civil trial, parties in a wrongful death case reached a confidential settlement...

Issue 21, June 10, 2004

• Tort reform law may shrink $5M judgment

  A jury awarded on Monday $5 million in punitive damages to the family of a 90-year old Georgia...

• Judge dismisses case against 12 SNF employees

  Citing lack of evidence, a judge dismissed charges of elder abuse and neglect against twelve...

• Nursing home fined $10,000 for poor security

  The Illinois Department of Public Health last week fined one nursing home $10,000 for failing to...

Issue 20, June 2, 2004

• Family of HIV-infected resident sues over discrimination

  The family of a stroke victim filed a lawsuit against a Louisiana nursing home that allegedly...

• AMA maps out medical liability crisis

  Are you curious about the effect of the liability crisis on facilities in neighboring states? The...

• Unused funds prompt investigation

  In the wake of a lawsuit filed last week concerning the placement of sex offenders in a Minneapolis...

Issue 19, May 26, 2004

• Lawmakers block civil lawsuits against SNFs

  Louisiana skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) can breathe a sigh of relief. A House panel on Tuesday...

• Attorney General sues SNF housing sex offenders

  Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch yesterday filed a lawsuit claiming a Minneapolis skilled...

• Pennsylvania debates mandatory overtime ban

  Healthcare unions spoke out to Pennsylvania's Senate Judiciary Committee this week in favor of a...

Issue 18, May 19, 2004

• Exceptions for pregnant staff not required, says judge

  Nursing homes may have the legal right to fire employees who are unable to meet job...

• OIG to scrutinize assisted living

  The assisted living industry is under the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) microscope...

• Louisiana cracks down on nursing home abuse

  Stepping up its efforts to curb abuse against nursing home residents, the office of Louisiana...

Issue 17, May 13, 2004

• Court decision threatens CA’s tort reform law

  A California Supreme Court ruling this week could result in more elder abuse claims against the...

• LTC must increase staff vaccination rates, says APIC

  Only about 36% of healthcare workers with direct patient contact are immunized annually-a statistic...

• Undercover investigations in NM reveal care problems

  Three New Mexico nursing homes received unexpected public scrutiny after undercover evaluators...

Issue 16, May 5, 2004

• Inadequate care allegations cost nursing home $90K

  Although it denies any wrongdoing, one Philadelphia-area nursing home will be paying $90,000 to the...

• Study: Carpet reduces fall injuries

  A two-year study suggested that nursing home residents who fell on carpeted wood floors were 80...

• Norwalk virus strikes nursing homes again

  Despite the recent long-term care industry’s focus on infection control, the Norwalk virus...

Issue 15, April 28, 2004

• Resident struck by nursing home bus

  A resident of Arkansas Health Center in Benton, AR, was killed when the facility’s bus backed...

• Police investigate resident’s fatal fall

  A 54-year-old nursing home resident died after falling through a window five stories to the ground...

• Safety law mandates medical error reporting

  New Jersey Governor James McGreevey last week signed a law ordering the state’s healthcare...

Issue 14, April 22, 2004

• Nursing home CEO convicted of Medicare fraud

  A San Francisco judge this week sentenced a nursing home chief executive officer (CEO) to six and...

• Interest groups ask Supreme Court to overturn tort law

  Arkansas’ new tort reform legislation that limits damage awards in civil cases may have...

• CDC helps LTC fight off drug-resistant bacteria

  The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched a campaign to halt the...

Issue 13, April 15, 2004

• AARP campaigns to keep nursing home records in court

  A proposed Senate bill barring nursing homes’ state inspection records from the courtroom...

• Senate rejects medical liability reform legislation

  The president/chief executive officer of the American Health Care Association (AHCA) expressed...

Issue 12, April 8, 2004

• Flesh-eating bacteria plagues nursing home

  After a Gainesville, GA, nursing home resident died of infection from flesh-eating bacteria-or...

• NH creates database of Alzheimer’s sufferers

  A new initiative is underway in New Hampshire to quickly locate Alzheimer’s or dementia...

• Physician survey: Lawsuits inflate healthcare costs

  Medical lawsuits drive up the cost of healthcare, according to a survey of physicians who practice...

Issue 11, March 31, 2004

• Fire ant infestation results in resident deaths

  Although they aren't common, fire ant attacks present an increasing danger to nursing homes...

• Nursing home charged in cover-up scandal

  A suburban Pittsburgh nursing home that allegedly covered up the cause of death of an...

• Poor care may mean funding loss-but no lawsuit

  After investigators determined deficient care at a Portland, ME nursing home led to a resident's...

Issue 10, March 26, 2004

• Sprinkler show-and-tell required for Tennessee SNFs

  Tennessee skilled nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, and residential homes for the...

• Deter dementia violence with staff training

  The best method to curb violence in nursing homes may be better staff training, suggested experts...

• Assisted living facility faces abuse allegations

  An assisted living facility in Mechanicsville, VA faces allegations of resident abuse and...

Issue 9, March 18, 2004

• Pressure sores result in $10M judgment

  Negligence and poor care cost Atlanta-based Mariner Post-Acute Network, Inc., $10 million, reported...

• OH drafts liability lifeline for physicians

  If the physicians in your nursing home are concerned about medical liability insurance, chances are...

• Choking death brings CMS’ heavy hand

  After a resident choked to death earlier this year at the Franciscan Villa in Milwaukee, WI, the...

Issue 8, March 11, 2004

• OIG remains focused on nursing home staffing compliance

  The Office of Inspector General (OIG) continues to scrutinize nursing homes' compliance with...

• New Mexico passes "granny cam" bill

  Nursing home staff in New Mexico will soon be smiling for the cameras, following last week’s...

• Reforms prompt Florida insurers to reenter market

  Seven months after tort reform became a reality in Florida-creating a $750,000 cap for noneconomic...

Issue 7, March 4, 2004

• U.S. Justice Department sues nursing home over questionable care

  A 2002 investigation at the Nim Henson Geriatric Center in Breathitt County, KY, led the U.S...

• Wrongful death suit alleges inadequate supervision

  After a mentally ill resident left his nursing home undetected and was struck by a train 300 feet...

• More healthcare workers should receive flu vaccine, says NFID

  The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) says only 36% of healthcare workers get flu...

Issue 6, February 26, 2004

• Lawmakers address nursing home fire safety

  Following September's deadly nursing home fire that resulted in 14 resident deaths, Tennessee...

• Nursing homes, owner face $45 million in lawsuits

  The state of Arkansas sued five nursing homes and their Franklin, TN–based parent company...

• Accused nurse’s former employers in compliance, says state

  A nursing home and several hospitals—former employers of a nurse accused of killing more than...

Issue 5, February 18, 2004

• Nursing homes focus on bathtub safety after resident death

  After a resident at Jubilee Lodge Nursing Home in Alberta, Canada, suffered fatal second-degree...

• Wrongful death settlement spells more trouble for Kindred

  Following last week’s ruling that required Kindred Healthcare to pay $3.7 million to remedy...

• Reforms sought after ALF resident's death

  The family of a man killed after wandering away from a Dania Beach, Florida assisted living...

Issue 4, February 12, 2004

• Substandard care costs nursing home $3.7M

  Poor care at four Kentucky nursing homes will cost Kindred Nursing Centers Limited Partnership $3.7...

• Details of nursing home death remain murky

  Several state and city officials have launched investigations into the death last week of a...

• CNA charged with resident abuse

  A certified nursing assistant (CNA) was charged with nine counts of assault and battery and five...

Issue 3, February 5, 2004

• Resident violence a problem in nursing homes

  Nursing homes have measures in place to prevent staff-to-resident abuse, but what about...

• Investigators probe an ALF resident's death

  After a resident suffering from Alzheimer’s disease wandered out of an assisted living...

• Untreated pressure sores lead to criminal charges

  An Albuquerque, NM-based nursing home faces criminal charges of neglect after a resident died from...

Issue 2, January 29, 2004

• Debate over LTC reform heats up in Florida

  Two months before Florida's legislature is scheduled to meet, trial lawyers and advocacy groups for...

• Workers' comp lawsuit yields hefty settlement

  A jury awarded this month $12 million in punitive damages and $60,000 in compensatory damages to a...

• Bush repeats call for medical malpractice reform

  Despite seeing his proposal blocked in the Senate last year, President Bush again called for...

Issue 1, January 22, 2004

• Oklahoma legislators propose tort reform

  To dispel the state’s mounting reputation among lawyers as a friendly harbor for frivolous...

• Nursing homes choose captives to survive liability crisis

  Long-term care facilities have been seeking insurance alternatives as liability coverage becomes...

• Lawsuit, financial struggles bankrupt LTC chain

  A $6 million wrongful-death lawsuit may be the straw that broke the camel's back for Goodwill Care...