Broward nursing home abuse

Published on: July 5, 2018

More Issues with Priority Power Restoration List in South Florida Nursing Homes

Most people are familiar with the tragic story of how 12 residents died in a Hollywood nursing home after it lost power due to Hurricane Irma slamming into the region. In that case, the temperatures go to deadly levels and much of the equipment was not functioning. While this particular case has been covered extensively in the media, there is now a focus on preventing a similar tragic incident in the future as we head into the full swing of hurricane season in South Florida once again.

Whenever a major weather event causes massive power outages, and this can include a major hurricane, a tropical storm, or even severe thunderstorms, local power company workers should be out in force working to restore power. Since some facilities like hospitals, police stations, fire stations, and others are deemed more critical than others in terms of having power quickly restored, there is a priority list maintained by Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) so they can focus on restoring the most essential systems first and then going back and getting everyone else’s power back on. Continue reading →

Published on: October 31, 2015

Advocacy Group to Feds: Stop Funding Predatory Nursing Homes

By Dean Freeman

Mandatory arbitration agreements have become a common staple in the nursing home admissions process. These documents are shoved in front of patients and/or their loved ones with little explanation of the fact that a signature amounts to the loss of significant civil rights in the event the patient is neglected or abused.

That means patients and their loved ones are denied justice, and the nursing homes can evade accountability.

Now, a legal advocacy group is pushing the federal government for forceful action on this issue. The group Public Justice has filed extensive comments with the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS), calling on the agency to cut funding to any nursing home that requires arbitration agreements. The agency is said to be seriously considering such action. Continue reading →

Published on: May 29, 2015

Report: Nursing Home Abuse Concealed by Management

By Dean Freeman

Four nursing home workers have been arrested and the state attorney general in New York is continuing to investigate allegations the facility actively concealed abuse and neglect of vulnerable residents.

In all, there are 45 crimes listed in the indictment among the four workers, including:

willful violation of health laws

Continue reading →

Published on: April 22, 2015

Report: State Nursing Homes Blamed for Fatal Abuse, Neglect, Negligence

By Dean Freeman

In California, the non-profit Center for Investigative Reporting has been working hard to learn more about alleged abuse and maltreatment of developmentally disabled patient in the care of state-run centers.

After drawn-out litigation over public records that the state refused to turn over, the journalists finally prevailed. What those records ultimately revealed, according to a recent report, paints a deeply troubling picture.

Since 2002, the Department of Public Health found state-run homes responsible for the deaths of 13 people. Even more deaths and serious injuries were cited as being the cause of administrators and staffers allowing highly dangerous living situations, even if that wasn’t the direct cause.

Continue reading →