Chicago Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

On May 13, 2013, hundreds of nursing home staff members gathered outside of the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago to protest the most recent cuts for medical services. While Illinois lawmakers allege that cuts are being made across the board, members of the cheering crowd rallied behind the idea that cutting Medicaid funding for nursing home residents is "just wrong."

One concerned citizen in particular stated that her brother is a resident at a facility in Aurora and recently the frames on his glasses broke. However, he is unable to get a new pair for at least 2 years, which is the mandatory waiting period. This is just one example of the repercussions from the state reducing or eliminating Medicaid funding for prescription drugs, dental care, eyeglasses, chiropractic care, and a variety of other services.

The Medicaid cuts that effectively eliminated dental, vision, and podiatry were supposed to save Illinois approximately $1.6 billion. However, state officials have admitted that those projected savings feel short by nearly 30%.

Fortunately, there is an increasing amount of awareness. For example, resident of a nursing home located in Quincy recently took it upon themselves to persuade Illinois lawmakers to restore some of the services that were cut as a result of Medicaid reform last year. The residents gathered to show their support for the Health Care Council's campaign titled, "Be a Star for Nursing Home Residents." The council is a professional association representing more than 80,000 nursing home professionals who serve more than 80,000 residents throughout 500 different nursing facilities in Illinois.

In furtherance of their campaign, representatives spoke to specific detriments of the funding reductions/eliminations. For example, a cut on a person's foot may not be thought of as a fatal issue. However, when the patient is a diabetic a simple cut can cause serious problems.

In order to show Governor Quinn and his staff that they truly are "stars," the residents were decked out in Hollywood attire, including crowns, feathered boas and fedoras. The residents then signed a petition that will be delivered to Governor Quinn, along with legislators.

On the other hand, the campaign did acknowledge that restoring Medicaid funds for dental, vision and podiatry would cost Illinois approximately $3 million to $4 million per year. However, with nearly 85% of residents within certain facilities relying on Medicaid funding, it is crucial to find a way to restore the funding and ensure that the residents will receive adequate care. The residents are real people with real medical needs.

The information in this blog was provided by Matt Hopf of the Herald-Whig. The article can be located at http://www.whig.com/story/22148391/nursing-home-residents-rally-to-restore-cuts-in-service.

Additional information regarding the recent protest outside of the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago can be located at http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2013/05/13/nursing-home-workers-protest-medicaid-spending-cuts/.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

Recent developments in the area of filial support law have the potential of affecting how families budget for nursing home costs. Currently, 29 states (not including Illinois) have what are called filial support laws on the books. Filial support laws are put in place in order to require certain family members of an indigent elderly person to provide financial assistance for his or her unpaid care. These laws have various levels of requirements depending upon the state that you are in. A recent law review article by law professor Katherine C. Pearson, which was published in the Spring 2013 edition of the University of Illinois Law School's Elder Law Journal, took an in-depth look at some of the states where these laws are taking a more prominent role in nursing home funding.

One of the cases that Pearson looked at was the Pennsylvania HCRA v. Pittas case. In September of 2007, John Pittas' (who was the appellant) mother was admitted to an HCR facility for skilled nursing care and treatment where she resided and was treated until March of 2008. In March of 2008, Pittas' mother relocated to Greece. A large portion of her bill at the HCR facility went unpaid and, as a result, HCR sued Pittas for $93,000 under the state's filial responsibility law. After a three-day trial, the trial court ruled against Mr. Pittas in the amount of $92,943.41. On appeal, the appellate court affirmed this ruling and refused to consider imposing joint responsibility on his mother's husband or her two other adult children.

In a recent article reacting to this decision in the Southern Illinoisan Business Journal by Richard Habiger, he states that "[w]ithout proper planning by both parents and children, and without legal advice from an experienced elder law attorney, children may very well be on the hook for thousands of dollars of care required by their aging parents." Although there are no filial support laws currently on the Illinois books, there are some experts, like Professor Pearson, who believe that more states may adopt similar laws in the upcoming years. This puts a premium on making sure that families plan for the costs of nursing home care in advance of admitting their loved ones into a long-term care facility.

Professor Pearson concluded her article with this theory on where legislation may be heading "It seems reasonable to conclude that when a nation is both willing and financially able to provide adequate public support to assist poor elders, filial support laws are less important and less frequently used. In the United States, when the federal government was willing to fully fund Medicare and Medicaid for elders' health care and long-term care in nursing homes, federal policies led states to repeal or limit the use of filial support laws to mandate financial support for parents by their adult children. However, as the large demographic cohort of baby boomers ages, thus increasing the likelihood of costly health care and long-term care, there may be heightened interest among the U.S. states in using filial support laws against adult children." Our office encourages you and your family to take the necessary steps to plan for nursing home care costs so that you will not have to worry about the effects of this potentially growing area of law. This may very well include seeking legal counsel for advice on how best to plan for funding, and how current state or federal law could affect your family's liability for the costs of long term care.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected, or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

Illinois currently funds programs that allow 80,000 elderly and disabled people to live at home. However, Illinois foresees itself running out of funding for such programs by March 15, 2013, which is 3-1/2 months before the fiscal year ends on June 30, 2013.
Once these funds are exhausted, smaller non-profit home healthcare agencies will be forced to close, layoff employees, and leave thousands of elderly people scrambling for alternatives to in-home care, according to Bob Thieman, executive director of the Illinois Association of Community Care Program Healthcare Providers. Thieman further stated, "The state's going to pay for this one way or another. If these seniors cannot be picked up by other in-home providers, they're going to wind up in nursing homes, which will cost a lot more."
It is becoming increasingly evident that the state legislature has failed to improve reforms for the pensions that will reduce the cost. Consequently, the state has been forced to delay in paying its bills in order to balance the budget.
While state officials claim that the situation is improving, Thieman indicated that it is actually getting worse for home healthcare providers. In fact, home healthcare providers already wait nearly 6 months to be paid by the state. Nevertheless, the state has advised them to continue submitting invoices even though they have no intention to paying them immediately.
As for the source of the problem, the department blames the action on overdue bills from last year, which it indicated "ate up" 1/4 of the $687 million budgeted for the current year. This spending strategy was intended to help elderly people remain independent by paying for in-home care.
Unfortunately, this would not be the first time that the state has encountered a problem of this magnitude. In fact, this is the 2nd time in 2 years that the state has exhausted its funds before the end of the fiscal year, according to Thieman. However, this year's warning arrived much earlier. Nevertheless, this early warning caused a much larger backlog of bills.
As previously stated, the program, which includes 40 providers, currently serves approximately 80,000 elderly people each month, according to the Department of Aging. These 40 providers are comprised of entities ranging from nonprofits such as Catholic Charities to for-profit companies such as Addus HealthCare. Further, the 40 providers employ nearly 25,000 home-care assistants, according to Thieman.
One may find themselves blaming the economy as a whole. However, no other state has institutionalized late payment of bills quite like Illinois, according to the National Council of State Legislatures. By the end of the 2012 fiscal year, the state's backlog of unpaid bills stood at $8.7 billion, which was approximately a quarter of the state's annual revenue. This number has the ability to sky-rocket to nearly $22 billion within 5 years unless the state takes action in order to curb its public pension costs. Furthermore, the state currently has $96.8 billion in unfunded pension liabilities.
With regard to possible solutions, Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka propositioned lawmakers to either approve increased spending or require state agencies with surplus funds to return them for other agencies to use. The legislature responded by approving additional funding. However, it did not allocate any funds for the elderly and people with disabilities, according to Topinka's spokesman, Brad Hahn.
If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.
The information in this blog was provided through an article in The Huffington Post authored by James B. Kelleher. If you would like to read the article in its entirety, please visit
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/09/illinois-elderly-home-care_n_2841143.html

A recent Chicago Sun-Times article has "sounded the alarm" on changes that the Long Term Care (LTC) insurance industry will soon be implementing. The article bluntly stated that "Gender discrimination is coming - and it's perfectly legal." The LTC insurance industry has come to the realization that women generally live longer than men. This means that women will use more benefits from their LTC policies. In an effort to increase profit, the LTC insurance industry has decided to move away from a unisex, age-centered model, and adopt a gender-specific model (as we see in life insurance) where policy prices will rise as much as 40 percent for some women. Genworth has announced that they will implement this gender-specific model in the second quarter of this year, and many other insurers are set to follow suit. The article suggests that if you are a woman who is considering purchasing LTC insurance, you should act now before prices start skyrocketing.

The article goes on to quote an employee of the insurance brokerage MAGA, LTC who stated that if someone buys a policy today, it is less likely that his or her premiums will increase by a large amount because "insurers have planned better." He also stresses that having even a small amount of LTC insurance will gain you entry into better facilities which prefer privately insured customers as opposed to those relying solely on Medicaid.

There has been some backlash to this gender-specific model which charges women more for the same plan that is given to men due to this perception that all women live longer. Based on the National Women's Law Center's (NWLC) 2012 report entitled "Turning to Fairness," the practice of "gender rating" costs women approximately $1 billion in the individual health insurance market in a year. It also states that on average insurance companies charge non-smoking women more than male smokers. Currently only thirteen (13) states have banned gender rating (Illinois is not one of them). The report states that gender rating also occurs in the group market where businesses with a predominantly female workforce will often pay more for coverage.

The NWLC report ends by documenting some of the effects that the Affordable Health Care Act (ACA) will have on these practices. Section 1557 of the ACA prohibits discrimination in health programs receiving federal dollars, including insurance, and other programs conducted by the federal government, including health insurance exchanges. Most of these provisions will take effect in 2014, and unfortunately will not reach those insurance programs that are not federally funded. The hope of the NWLC is that the implementation of the ACA will influence private insurance providers to adopt similar practices so that women will be treated with the same factors as men in the market.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health's Quarterly Report of Nursing Home Violators, the Illinois Department of Public Health initiated action against 132 Illinois nursing homes for violations of the Nursing Home Care Act or it has recommended decertification to the Director of the Department of Healthcare and Family Service, or the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services for violations in relation to patient care.
http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/nursing_homes_violations12/quarterly_report_2-12.htm.

This Quarterly Report covers the time period from April 2012 to June 2012. The next report will cover July 2012 to September 2012 and it will be interesting to see if the number of nursing homes with actions initiated against them or decertification recommendations placed with appropriate federal agencies has increased or decreased.

While these statistics do not necessarily give any insight into the frequency of nursing home abuse, neglect or injury incidents, they do provide insight into the level of compliance of Illinois nursing homes with relevant laws that exist to protect the elder against such incidents. Nursing homes are tasked with caring for arguably society's most vulnerable class of citizens and these nursing homes need to make more of an effort to come into compliance with the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act and relevant federal laws. The reported 132 Illinois nursing home violators between April 2012 and June 2012 is a disheartening number. It is a frightening number for any person currently living in an Illinois nursing home and/or considering a transition into a nursing home and Illinois nursing homes need to do better. The nursing homes need to do better to prevent abuse, neglect and injuries that seem to occur at an alarming frequency. The nursing homes of this state need to respect the laws governing them and need to make a strenuous effort to come into compliance with any relevant laws.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

A Lincoln, Illinois nursing home, Maple Ridge Care Centre, is planning a $500,000 effort to improve its operations and repair its reputation after coming under fire for several alleged instances of patient mistreatment, cleanliness issues, and mismanagement of infection control.

Tim Fields, a spokesperson for Maple Ridge, said that significant capital improvement dollars will go toward facility renovations that aim to improve the living conditions of the residents and the working conditions of the staff. Those renovations include updating the facility with new computer systems, break rooms for the staff and nursing stations. In addition, a medical records system is set to be installed, along with new social areas with flat-screen televisions and Internet availability.

Maple Ridge recently underwent a change in ownership and in the process of that change, will change its name to Symphony of Lincoln.

Despite the change in ownership and although the new owners have set out a plan to improve its operations, there are still concerns about understaffing, facility conditions, rough treatment of Maple Ridge residents by staff, lack of cleanliness, etc. Some feel that if the facility has additional funding that it should be spent directly addressing patient problems.

Jamie Freschi, a regional long-term care ombudsman, in a report dated August 25, 2012, stated that despite the change in ownership, complaints are still incoming about unanswered call lights, rude and sometimes rough treatment of Maple Ridge residents by the staff, lack of cleanliness and lax attitudes toward infection control. Freschi feels that if Maple Ridge has additional funding to spend on the facility, that additional funding could be spent providing more staffing and training.

There is cause for concern with the issues and complaints presented about Maple Ridge because these sub-par conditions often lead to nursing home neglect and/or injuries. Lincoln resident Diana Sexton reported that, up until the last few days, she had frequently found her daughter sitting in her own urine while nurse's aides were too busy or unwilling to help her use the restroom. Complaints like Diana Sexton's are too many and changes need to be made to prevent instances of neglect, abuse and/or preventable injuries from occurring. Nursing homes are tasked with providing a certain level of care to its residents and must strive to maintain that level of care so that residents do not suffer from low quality care due to understaffing and/or general lax staff attitudes that often lead to devastating results for nursing home residents.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

On Saturday, July 28, 2012, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed several new laws to protect senior citizens in Illinois. Governor Quinn has long been committed to protecting Illinois seniors and the signing of these new laws in just an extension of that commitment. The laws signed on Saturday "will promote safety, increase oversight and accountability for caregivers and help authorities identify and respond to reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation." http://www.enewspf.com/latest-news/latest-local/35152-governor-quinn-signs-new-laws-to-protect-illinois-seniors-.html.

Some highlights of the laws include giving law enforcement and fire departments access to reports of elder abuse, neglect, financial exploitation or self-neglect compiled by senior service providers, allowing the Illinois Department on Aging to receive reports of elder abuse or neglect for senior service providers via the internet and requiring nursing home residents' identification wristlets to include their facility's telephone number so that those residents who are found outside of their facility can be returned safely.

Each of the new laws seeks to address an area in which elder care has been deficient. These laws will help reduce instances of abuse, neglect and nursing home injuries, as well as facilitate more efficient communication to more efficiently and effectively address the needs of Illinois' senior citizens.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

Advocates for the elderly and disabled are disappointed with the lack of input they had concerning legislation on minimum staffing levels in nursing homes passed by the Illinois General Assembly. An Illinois State Senator, Jacqueline Collins, and other advocates for patients were urging for a 20 percent minimum RN level in nursing home facilities. Advocates urged that the 20 percent care level was supported by research and that it would lead to a reduction in neglect of nursing home residents. Collins, in particular supported the 20 percent RN level in nursing homes because the lack of RNs is a particular problem at Chicago-area nursing homes. Despite concerns and research brought forth by Advocates, the Illinois General Assembly did not pass a 20 percent RN minimum care level as part of the legislation.

The resulting agreement reached after group meetings on the language of the legislation and negotiations resulted in SB 2840 and includes $70 million in Medicaid cuts - 2.7 percent cut rather than the 15 percent cut that nursing homes feared. In addition, the agreement included Health Care Council of Illinois' preference for 10 percent RN staffing levels. This agreed upon 10 percent falls very short of what Advocates urge is a necessary level of care to provide appropriate staffing and individualized nursing and personal care to nursing home residents. Advocates contend that people are going to be neglected as a result of the staffing reductions. Collins was upset, not simply because the lack of RNs is a particular problem in her district, but because she was assured by Michael Gelder, Governor Quinn's senior health-care policy advisor, that the RN staffing issue would be resolved in negotiations after the state budget was passed by the General Assembly. It seems that, despite these assurances, the staffing issue was resolved through closed-door meetings and budget-related deals with the powerful nursing home industry - which happens to be one of the State's largest sources of political campaign contributions.

SB 2840 and its 10 percent RN care level has disappointed a lot of advocates for the elderly and disabled who feel left out of the process that ultimately decided their fate. RN care at a level of 10 percent is not enough to see meaningful improvements in the level of care required at Illinois nursing home facilities.

If you or someone you love has been injured, neglected or abused in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

http://www.pjstar.com/news/x345281011/Advocates-criticize-bill-to-reform-nursing-home-staffing-levels

A few months ago, we wrote about the dangers of overusing and improperly administering psychiatric drugs in nursing homes. Well, last week, U.S. health officials announced that they seek to alleviate some of these dangers by reducing the use of antipsychotics in nursing homes by fifteen percent before the end of 2012. This is a response to the rampant, wrongful use of these drugs to subdue dementia patients, and the risks that this abuse poses to their health and lives. If you believe that a nursing home is improperly or wrongfully providing medication to you or a loved one, here is an instructional guide on how to begin taking action. (see #9 for wrong medication issues)

To achieve their goal, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently launched a partnership with federal and state officials, advocacy groups, caregivers, and nursing homes, with the intention of providing better care to dementia patients in nursing homes. Antipsychotics certainly have proper and intended uses, including the treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc., but nursing homes have long administered these drugs to subdue dementia patients, which can have dangerous side effects, including death. Many nursing homes continue to disregard these risks, and routinely drug dementia patients with antipsychotics, perhaps because caregivers think the patients are too difficult to deal with properly.

CMS recently discovered that in 2010, daily doses of antipsychotics exceeding the recommended level were given to more seventeen percent of nursing home patients. There may have already been some rules in place to prevent caregivers from administering unnecessary drugs, and many of these antipsychotics explicitly warn of severe risks for dementia patients, but these rules were clearly not enough. This new partnership is a step in the right direction. CMS hopes to provide better training to caregivers, educate nursing homes on the use of antipsychotics, and provide alternatives to antipsychotics. Hopefully this will result in the desired fifteen percent decrease in antipsychotic administration, and more importantly, help provide better care for nursing home patients throughout the country.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a nursing home at the hands of nursing home caretakers, please contact Ed Fox & Associates today.

Illinois state lawmakers passed legislation last week that will result in $1.6 billion in Medicaid cuts. Many legislators and advocates are angered and concerned that the cuts will undercut much needed nursing home reforms. As part of the compromises reached last week, state officials set a level of care by registered nurses that was lower than what many advocates had hoped for.

Under the new staffing requirements, a minimum of 25 percent of all bedside care must be be provided by licensed nurses, with only 10 percent done by registered nurses. The new staffing requirements fell short of the 20 percent registered nurse bedside care that advocates for the elderly and disabled had been fighting for.

The Medicaid cuts also end the Illinois Cares Rx discount drug coverage for 180,000 low-income people and reportedly tighten Medicaid screening in ways that could remove hundreds of thousands of people from coverage.

The compromises and Medicaid cuts made last week stand to save the state about $240 million.

What does this mean for nursing home residents?

The compromises and Medicaid cuts made last week could have a minimal effect on nursing home residents. But this is unlikely. Negligence and abuse are more likely to happen in nursing homes that are underfunded and understaffed. As stated previously, this new legislation lowers the standard of care by registered nurses, who have a higher level of credentials and are paid more, which can only adversely affect the care provided to nursing home residents. Further, legislation of this nature requires nursing homes to re-prioritize goals. For example, nursing homes that, prior to this legislation, had abuse prevention as a priority, may have to set this objective aside until they can adjust to the Medicaid reimbursement cuts. The bottom line is that the Medicaid cuts are likely to adversely affect vital nursing home reforms enacted two years ago and delay improved care in nursing home facilities.

If you or someone you love has been neglected and/or abused in a nursing home, call the experienced attorneys at Ed Fox & Associates today.

The Herald-News reported that state public health officials confirmed Wednesday, May 2, 2012, that the State of Illinois is in the process of revoking the license for a Joliet nursing home, Hillcrest Healthcare Center. Hillcrest Healthcare Center reportedly has a "spotty regulatory record" filled with incidents of abuse and neglect. An Illinois Department of Public Health investigation found that between May and October, a male Hillcrest resident sexually, physically, or mentally assaulted several other residents. Unfortunately, this was not the first complaint filed against Hillcrest. In February, the state conducted an investigation after a resident was found dead in her room with a coaxial cord wrapped around her neck and mouth. In March, the state conducted another yet another investigation into the hospitalization of a Hillcrest resident and found that the facility staff gave that resident too high a dose of prescription seizure medicine.

The Mayor of Joliet, Tom Giarrante requested that the Illinois Department of Public Health perform one more inspection on Hillcrest before it closed citing his concern for the employees of Hillcrest once Hillcrest closes as one reason for his request. However, given the history of state investigations into the Hillcrest facility dating back at least 10 years, it seems that Hillcrest has had ample time to undergo change to provide adequate care for its residents.

State agencies that are responsible for overseeing nursing home care too often fail to ensure that problems with a facility are corrected. The reported revocation of Hillcrest's license signifies an effort by the Illinois Department of Public Health to take action when a facility is either underperforming or continuously falling short on the level of care provided to its residents.

If you or someone you love has been neglected in a nursing home, call the experienced attorneys at Ed Fox & Associates today.

http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/12271638-418/state-revoking-license-of-joliet-nursing-home.html

On Tuesday, a proposal to be considered by the Illinois General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules would require 20 percent of the "nursing and personal care" provided daily for each nursing home resident to be provided by a registered nurse (RN).

Advocates for the proposal cite the benefits of having registered nurses on staff. RNs are better equipped to spot changes in residents' health and take action.

The requirement works out to be about 46 minutes of RN time allotted to each State of Illinois nursing home resident each day.

The proposal carries fines for homes that fail to meet its requirements.

Approval of the proposal is far from certain. Those in opposition to it cite the increased cost of having RNs on staff for longer periods of time. Others claim it would be just as beneficial to increase the number of lesser-trained workers and would cost the State, and taxpayers, much less.

The Illinois General Assembly will examine the proposal in Tuesday's session.

The State Journal Register, "Illinois Nursing Homes at Odds Over RN Requirements". March 3, 2012, created by Dean Olsen.

Raina Hunter shared a story about her grandmother, who she calls "Nana" in ABC's, The Drum Opinion, and talks about the abuse and neglect her grandmother suffered at a care center in Melbourne.

After Raina's grandmother fell and fractured her pelvis in two places, she had to spend time in rehabilitation and respite centers to recover. During her time in care, Raina's grandmother experienced several complications, including the development of cellutitis in her legs, that Raina untimately attributes to neglect. Raina stated that "there is no question in [her] mind that the dangerous cellulitis in her legs would have remained unnoticed by the medical staff charged with looking after her...."

When Raina's grandmother finally saw a private hospital doctor, the doctor had to hold himself back from swearing when he saw her legs - Raina's grandmother was ultimately admitted to the hospital where she was placed on an antibiotic drip for two weeks. When she was released, Raina noticed that her legs seemed "redder" than were the previous week. So she asked the workers at the new respite center - the one her grandmother was moved to after suffering neglect at the first one - for advice because there was no doctor or nurse on staff. Raina's grandmother, again, had to be taken to the hospital, where she was ultimately readmitted, placed back on the antibiotic drip, this time for three weeks. Fortunately for Raina, her grandmother has started to recover and even walk with the aid of others.

Raina's grandmother's injuries were exacerbated because of the negligence she suffered at two different care facilities. And while Raina's grandmother utlimately received the treatment she needed, what if her family had not been around to keep an eye on her treatment? Or as Raina pointed out in her story, what about those elderly people who do not have any family to keep an eye on them? Another frightening prospect is: what if the family of an elder person, whom they suspect is being abused and/or neglected simply does not know what to do? Raina's grandmother is unfortunately not alone in suffering. There are too many stories of nursing home and/or care center neglect and abuse. Such neglect or abuse often results in serious injury, and even death, to some residents.

If you or someone you love has been neglected in an Illinois nursing home, call the experienced attorneys at Ed Fox & Associates today.

http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3808370.html

The Illinois Department of Public Health has issued one Belleville, Illinois nursing home eight citations. The citations came after a 77-year-old resident with dementia and heart disease wandered away and was later found dead of hypothermia.

The Chicago Tribune reported that the same patient had wandered from the nursing home on two prior occasions. According to a state report, the patient still was not fitted with a patient monitoring device.

The nurse in charge of the patient's care stated that the patient's care plan was never revised to address his behaviors so she was not aware of his tendency to wander off.

Continue reading "Chicagoland Nursing Home Issued 8 Citations by Public Health Agency" »

The federal government ranks nursing homes yearly. The rating system was instituted in order to increase transparency in consumer health care markets. The system was instituted in 2008 and received both positive and negative feedback. Individuals who do not support the rating system claim the ratings are simplistic and unfair and cite to the fact that the quality of nursing home care can improve rapidly, even over night.

Unfortunately, many of the one-star nursing homes this year have consistently received low rankings since 2008. Furthermore, Illinois has nearly 50 one-star ranked nursing homes. Even more surprisingly, for-profit nursing homes take the largest percentage of one-star homes.

Problems that can drop nursing home ratings include consistently dirty equipment and linens, mistreatment, and unlicensed caregivers or specialists.

Continue reading "48 Illinois Nursing Homes Given One-Star Ranking" »