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November 2, 2021
In this Issue:
- Advocacy Needed for Nursing Home Residents; Consumer Voice Sends Letter to Congressional Leadership
- Materials Available from NORC Webinar on Protecting Residents from Inappropriate Evictions
- LTCCC Releases Assessment of Federal Data on Nursing Home Oversight
- CFPB Publishes Guide on Preventing Elder Financial Abuse
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Advocacy Needed for Nursing Home Residents; Consumer Voice Sends Letter to Congressional Leadership
Last week, we asked you to reach out to your members of Congress to tell them to include critical provisions that would increase protections for nursing home residents. These provisions would lead to a minimum staffing standard, improve the survey and enforcement process, improve the accuracy and reliability of data submitted to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and increase scrutiny of Medicare cost reports.
The good news is that Congress has heard your voice! These important provisions were included in the most recent version of the Build Back Better Act. However, the inclusion of the provisions in the final bill is not ensured. We need you to continue to reach out to your members of Congress and tell them to include these provisions!
Please complete this form to reach out to your members of Congress and tell them to support these provisions!
Consumer Voice sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy highlighting the importance of protections for nursing home residents and emphasizing their need for inclusion in the Build Back Better reconciliation bill.
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Materials Available from NORC Webinar on Protecting Residents from Inappropriate Evictions
Materials are available from the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource (NORC)'s webinar "Protecting Residents from Inappropriate Evictions in Residential Care Communities." This webinar discussed federal and state legal tools and advocacy strategies to defend residents of residential care communities (RCCs) from inappropriate evictions.
Eric Carlson of Justice in Aging provided an overview of common state laws that may be utilized for eviction protection and explained how the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Rule requires protections against inappropriate eviction for residents living in residential settings funded by Medicaid HCBS programs (e.g., RCCs).
Attendees also heard about state and local advocacy strategies to address evictions of residents in RCCs. Amanda Scott, Idaho State Long-Term Care Ombudsman, and Molly Davies, Vice President of Elder Abuse Prevention and Ombudsman Services, WISE & Healthy Aging, California Long-Term Care Ombudsman program, shared their work.
Get the webinar materials.
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LTCCC Releases Assessment of Federal Data on Nursing Home Oversight
The Long Term Care Community Coalition (LTCCC) has released a new report, Broken Promises: An Assessment of Federal Data on Nursing Home Oversight, providing the results of a new study on the effectiveness of state and federal efforts to ensure that nursing home residents are safe and treated with dignity. The results of this study indicate that, in the years leading into the COVID-19 pandemic and the first year of the pandemic, the state and federal response to longstanding and often serious problems in nursing homes was, overall, very weak. The report provides maps and tables illustrating state and regional performance. Visit LTCCC's website to view and download interactive versions of the maps and table, which will help the public, as well as policymakers, understand the extent to which nursing home residents in their state and region are being protected.
LTCCC also released A Guide to Nursing Home Oversight & Enforcement. The Guide is a useful resource for anyone interested in understanding what to expect from the government agencies charged with ensuring nursing home resident safety and dignity, from requirements for nursing home inspections to actions on complaints about resident abuse and neglect.
Consumer Voice Conference registrants can look forward to attending a session from LTCC on their report on Wednesday, November 3rd at 3:00pm ET during the Consumer Voice Conference. To attend this session, be sure you are registered for the conference.
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CFPB Publishes Guide on Preventing Elder Financial Abuse
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)’s Office for Older Americans released a new guide to help family members and friends of people living in nursing homes and assisted living communities learn how to prevent and report elder financial abuse. This guide is for family, friends, and other community members. It walks through four steps to fighting elder financial abuse: Prevent, Recognize, Record, and Report. The guide lists red flags to watch for, shares some common scenarios, and includes resources you can use to help your loved one. Download or order the new guide for free.
Consumer Voice Conference registrants can look forward to attending a roundtable session with CFPB as they discuss the strategies in this guide on Thursday, November 3rd at 4:15pm ET during the Consumer Voice Conference. To attend this session, be sure you are registered for the conference.
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