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January 3, 2023
In this Issue:
- New Study Finds COVID-19 Vaccination of Nursing Home Staff Signficantly Improves Outcomes for Residents
- Materials Available from Webinar on Illegal Nursing Home Debt Collection Practices
- Resources for Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs
- Materials Available from TA Talk on Family Councils
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New Study Finds COVID-19 Vaccination of Nursing Home Staff Significantly Improves Outcomes for Residents
A recent study has confirmed the need for COVID-19 boosters for nursing home staff and residents. A study by researchers at the University of Chicago found that COVID-19 vaccination of nursing home staff significantly improved resident outcomes over time. Researchers wrote, "This cohort study of 15,042 nursing homes found that, holding everything else constant prior to the Omicron variant wave, an increase in staff vaccination rates of 10 percentage points was associated with fewer weekly COVID-19 cases among residents, fewer weekly COVID-19 deaths among residents, and fewer weekly COVID-19 cases among staff."
Consumer Voice continues to highlight the importance of nursing home residents and staff being up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations. In a recent episode of the Pursuing Quality Long-Term Care podcast, we spoke with Dr. Celine Gounder, Senior Fellow and Editor-at-Large for Public Health at the Kaiser Family Foundation and Kaiser Health News. She addressed questions about the efficacy of boosters and also how frequently nursing home residents and staff should be receiving them. Listen to the podcast.
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Materials Available from Webinar on Illegal Nursing Home Debt Collection Practices
Materials are available from the webinar, "Illegal Nursing Home Debt Collection Practices: Protecting Residents and Families." Nursing homes are prohibited from requesting or requiring a third party to guarantee payment for a resident's admission or continued stay. Despite this prohibition, some facilities seek to collect residents' debts from relatives, caregivers, and others if the resident or their estate cannot pay. Nursing homes hire debt collectors to demand payment, report the debt as belonging to caregivers and other third-parties, and even sue them in court. These practices can violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
This webinar, co-hosted by Consumer Voice and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), addressed these unscrupulous practices, discussed resident and family rights during the admissions process, and offered strategies for assisting residents and families.
Get the webinar recording and slides.
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Resources for Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs
 New products and resources for long-term care Ombudsman programs are now available in the Consumer Voice store:
Find these products and more in our store.
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Materials Available from TA Talk on Family Councils
Materials are available from the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center (NORC)'s December TA Talk on family councils. NORC provides daily in-depth technical assistance, consultation, information, and referral for Ombudsman programs. To increase direct access to technical assistance (TA) and peer support, NORC hosts quarterly live technical assistance dialogues.
This TA Talk featured a discussion with Jocelyn Bogdan, Senior Program & Policy Specialist, Consumer Voice; Linda Beck, Staff Ombudsman, Long Term Care Ombudsman Services of San Luis Obispo County, California Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program; Crista Barnett Nelson, Executive Director, Senior Advocacy Services, California Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program; and Jane M. Brink, Resident and Family Council Specialist, Minnesota Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program.
Get Materials
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