New Rule Provides Opportunity for Justice in Nursing Homes
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September 30, 2016
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By Mary Day
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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency in charge of long-term care facilities, has issued a new rule effective November 2016 that cuts Medicare and Medicaid funding to facilities that require nursing home residents to agree to arbitration as a condition of admission.
Arbitrations, now required by millions of nursing facility admission contracts, are confidential and there is no federal database that records their outcomes. Therefore claims of elder abuse, sexual harassment and even wrongful death are out of public view.
By restoring a fundamental right of millions of elderly Americans across the country – their day in court – the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has put forth the most significant rule governing federal funding of long-term care facilities in more than two decades.
The New York Times provides a thorough article about the new rule and its significance.
