Senior Health Care

Report: Vast Financial Trouble For County-Owned New York Nursing Homes

Published on: August 27, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The nursing home options for New York seniors is changing rapidly. In the past, many facilities were owned publicly, usually by local counties. Elder care advocates often praise these models, because there are concerns about how the profit-motive of private homes affects overall care. Studies have shown that non-profit homes have better overall caregiving records with fewer deficiency citations.

However, finding available beds in a non-profit nursing home is becoming increasingly difficult in New York.

Shift to Private Homes

Is There a New Way to Test for Dementia?

Published on: August 22, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

It is a nightmare for many families. A senior shows signs of cognitive mental challenges–becomes forgetful and eventually is unable to live on their own. An adult child take control of the senior’s affairs in order to pay for bills and arrange for long-term care. But when the family member checks banks accounts they discover that the senior’s nest egg has been demolished. Tens of thousands of dollars have been funnelled out to strangers. The senior was the victim of financial exploitation, and now there is little money to pay for the long-term care that they need.

Believe it or not, this scenario occurs frequently. Dementia and Alzheimer’s are not rare diseases; they strike large portions of the population. Yet, because the signs build up only slowly, many family members do not realize the scope of their parent’s mental decline until far too late–after they hurt themselves in an accident or are financially decimated in a scam.

Because of the risks, elder law attorneys frequently remind residents to be proactive–checking up on loved ones frequently and putting legal documents in place to identify problems early on.

New York Nursing Homes & Poor Dental Care

Published on: August 5, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Most horror stories about poor nursing home care include tales of grotesque “bed sores,” broken bones gone undiagnosed, and similar cases of obvious caregiving lapses. But the best way to measure the quality of long-term care facilities may not be to see how many of these “big” mistakes are made. Instead, it might be more appropriate to look into resident’s mouths.

As a New York Times article discussed last week, there is a chronic problem of poor (and virtually non-existent) dental care provided at far too many nursing homes. A facility’s attention to dental care may be a key indicator of their overall commitment to proper support.

For one thing, many seniors do not have dental insurance. Medicare usually does not cover basic dental care. Medicaid might, but many have reported problems finding local dentists who accept Medicaid coverage. Without private insurance, many seniors simply go without regular cleanings and preventative care. Following a medical setback, dementia, or other challenge, many of these seniors land in nursing homes already in poor dental health.

Queens Nursing Home Facility Director Faces Criminal Neglect Charges

Published on: June 12, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

It is no secret that most New Yorkers would prefer to “age in place” instead of moving into a nursing home. For one thing, having access to the comforts of one’s own home and the freedom to live as independently as possible is a natural goal. On top of that, however, are the myriad of horror stories that continue to pop up regarding mistreatment, neglect, and outright abuse that is sometime perpetrated at skilled nursing facilities. If you read enough of those harrowing accounts, it is easy to get the impression that these homes are no place to thrive in your golden years.

A new story coming out of Queens offers little relief. As reported this weekend in the NY Daily News, a former director of nursing at a Queens facility is now facing criminal charges for her conduct following a resident’s wandering from the facility.

Authorities explain how two weeks ago a 74-year old resident of the facility went missing. He was apparently not properly supervised and wandered out of the home without notice of the caregivers. The man has dementia, and obviously is at risk of serious harm while alone in the community. The senior has still not been found.

New York Mayoral Candidate Calls for NY Elderly Database

Published on: June 11, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

This is a heated time for local politics, as various high-profile public officials jockey to replace Michael Bloomberg in the Mayor’s Office. As part of the process, the candidates share different ideas about the challenges facing the city and the ways to fix them. This can be a helpful endeavor, focusing public attention on needed concerns and providing a burst of new ideas to, hopefully, enact change.

For example, one of the front-runners in the race, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn recently pointed to the risks faced by New York City seniors and the need for more proactive steps to keep those seniors safe. As reported in a NY Daily News story late last week, Quinn believes that a database of homebound seniors is necessary to ensure that those at-risk individuals receive the aid they need–particularly during natural disasters. This need was put in perspective following the many stranded seniors caught in the middle of Hurricane Sandy last year.

Quinn explained: “There were many reports that people were stuck in buildings without water, food, heat, and we want to be able to target those individuals. Some of these individuals were elderly or disabled, and it took the city, everyone would admit, longer than it should have to start outreach to locate them.”

Overuse of Antipsychotic Drugs Still a Problem at New York Nursing Homes

Published on: June 6, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The stigma associated with life in nursing homes remain strong. Many seniors do everything in their power to avoid moving into a skilled nursing facility over fears of the quality of life that residents experience. These are common worries, and a key reason that New York resident conduct early estate planning and elder care planning to ensure they are doing everything they can so they have quality living options if necessary down the road.

Unfortunately, progress in addressing quality of life issues at these facilities is often slow-going. For example, one of the most well-known issues affecting nursing homes throughout the country, including New York, is the overuse of antipsychotic drugs to “control” residents. These “chemical restraints” make it easier for employees to watch a larger number residents. But the drug use drastically lower the quality of life of many residents, often placing them in a stupor without the ability to meaningfully interact with the world.

The problem of chemical restraints have been known for years, and recently federal agencies pushed to tackle the issue. But, so far, the progress has been limited. As a New York World story noted, the overall decrease in antipsychotic use is modest and some facilities throughout New York continue to increase use of the dangerous drugs.

Is New York Ready For Boom in Old Age?

Published on: May 8, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The Post-Star recently published a story with the provocative headline: “Old Age is Coming, and We Are Not Ready.”

The article touches on some practical issues in New York state that have often been discussed in the wake of the national demographic shift that is already underway. As most know, the population is aging. But far fewer give serious consideration to what these means for those seniors (and society as a whole). The coming of old age has two main questions: (1) Do we have the appropriate quantity of services to provide the care necessary for all seniors in need in future years? (2) If not, how are we going to come up with the resources to acquire those services?

Minimal Senior Care Services

More Oversight Needed to Improve Nursing Home Quality?

Published on: May 2, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The Herald Tribune recently reported on troubling case of nursing home neglect and Medicaid fraud that is causing many to worry about a lack of industry oversight.

At the heart of the problem are questions about why a nursing home closed in 2011 for repeated quality of care problems was allowed to open at all. The facility was opened in 2006 by two family members (a brother and brother-in-law). Somehow, when screening the pair’s application to open the facility, officials did not register that the two men were both sentenced to three years in prison in the late 1970s for New York Medicaid fraud.

Obviously the owners’ past record of criminally violating Medicaid rules should have raised huge red flags as they tried to again operate a business where they would receive Medicaid funding. But, none of that mattered; the two men made it through the screening and received a license to practice.

NY Senator Facing Allegations of Conflict of Interest In Nursing Home Legislation

Published on: April 16, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

New conflict of interest claims are being made against a powerful New York State Senate leader related to nursing home legislation and operation. The situation presents troubling issues of undue influence, and it is also a good example of the complex relationships in the state which ultimately dictate rules and regulations regarding NY long-term care.

The Allegations

The New York Daily News reported on concerns that state Senator Jeffrey Klein may have acted improperly when he involved himself in issues affecting New York nursing home care in Albany while at the same time sitting on the Board of Directors for a Bronx nursing home. The BOD position was not paid, but the Senator did receive over $71,000 in campaign contributions from the nursing home industry. Troublingly, Klein did not disclose his relationship with the Bronx nursing home, Morningside House, on required disclosure forms.

New Survey on Cost of New York Nursing Home Stays

Published on: April 11, 2013 | by Ettinger Law Firm

All medical care is expensive. Many people are shocked when they get a medical bill covering costs for even minor incidents, emergency room visits, or very short hospital stays. Consider then what the costs must be for care that occurs every day for month or years–it is staggering. That is the prism through which nursing home costs should be examined. While the traditional skilled nursing home does not necessarily provide the same comprehensive care as an actual hospital, the costs of ensuring around-the-clock access to certain medical treatments is incredibly expensive.

NY Nursing Home Study

The shocking nature of those expenses were recently verified in a new study. The NY Daily News reported this week on the findings. The results of Genworth’s annual “Cost of Care” survey were revealed, confirming that there is almost nowhere more expensive to receive long-term care than New York. For example, according to the study, on average, a single room in an elder care facility in Manhattan costs a mind-boggling $180,000 per year. And this cost is not some anomaly for that borough. The average yearly cost for a senior in Queens is about $140,000, and a Long Island resident should expect to pay $160,000 each year.