An appeals court held that an agreement to apply for Medicaid benefits for a nursing home resident made by the resident’s guardian or family members may be legally enforceable by the nursing facility in which the resident resides. Pine Brook Care Center v. D’Alessandro, Docket No. A-3197-18T1 (NJ Appellate Division, November 23, 2020) In April.. read more →

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency, the New Jersey Supreme Court has authorized various adjustments to court operations as set forth in a series of nine Omnibus Orders, issued between March and October 2020. After initially authorizing a swift transition from in-person to remote court operation, the Supreme Court authorized an incremental.. read more →

An Ohio appeals court dismissed a nursing home’s lawsuit to recover a resident’s unpaid fees from his son who signed an admission agreement as his father’s agent under a power of attorney. Village at the Greene v. Smith (Ohio Ct. App., 2d, No. 28762, August 14, 2020). On June 22, 2018, Robert Smith (“the father”) granted.. read more →

The decedent was admitted to the defendant facility, Regency Heritage Nursing and Rehabilitation, in 2013. On the admission date, her daughter accompanied her to the nursing home. The daughter alleged that she was separated from her mother and brought to a conference room, where she was presented with a stack of documents to sign. She.. read more →

This video series is a must-see for New Jersey residents with questions concerning nursing home law and resident rights. This promotional video for the Nursing Home Resident Rights Video Series was presented by noted Certified Elder Law Attorney, Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq., as part of The Medical Side of Elder Law Lecture Series. The Medical.. read more →

The New Jersey Supreme Court issued its First Omnibus Order on March 27, 2020 extending by 30 days the deadlines for the suspension of court proceedings and other matters in light of the ongoing public health emergency caused by COVID-19. The previous orders involved criminal, civil, family, tax and municipal courts, and suspended civil and.. read more →

A nurse’s aide at a senior care facility in southern Minnesota posted a photograph of an elderly patient with on social media with a demeaning and vulgar message did not violate state law meant to protect patient privacy, a state court ruled. Furlow v. Madonna Summit of Byron, Docket No. A19-0987 (Minn. Ct. of Appeals,.. read more →

On January 29, 2020, I presented at the 2020 ““Elder Law in a Day” seminar given by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey. I presented the case law update, summarizing the most significant legal developments over the past year in the areas.. read more →

The patient was age 53 when he was transferred to Kindred Hospital. He had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and bipolar disorder in his twenties. When he signed the arbitration agreement in issue, he had required 24-hour nursing care for the previous 13 years, although he was not cognitively impaired at the time of the.. read more →

Involuntary Transfers Or Evictions To Another Care Facility “Difficult” residents are often subjected to involuntary eviction on the basis of the resident’s welfare, and that the resident’s needs cannot be met at the current nursing facility. As one commentator notes, “This type of argument is misplaced, however, because it only applies if the resident’s needs.. read more →

The Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987 (“NHRA”) was enacted by Congress to provide “sweeping reform” in response to widespread issues of abuse, neglect, inadequate care, and general denial of residents’ basic rights in nursing facilities. Revised regulations for nursing facilities were released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) in 2016. These.. read more →

On November 20, 2019, I presented at the 2019 “The Medical Side of Elder Law” seminar given by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education at the Hilton/Doubletree Hotel in Fairfield, New Jersey. I presented an overview of the rights of residents of nursing homes and other care facilities under federal and state laws.. read more →

The Medical Side of Elder Law 2019 Location: New Jersey Law Center, 1 Constitution Sq. New Brunswick, NJ 08901 Date: November 20, 2018 Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM ET Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. (http://VanarelliLaw.com/) will present at the 2019 “The Medical Side of Elder Law” seminar given by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.. read more →

New Jersey appeals court held that a nursing home does not have standing to bring a lawsuit against the daughter/power of attorney of a resident who transferred the resident’s money to herself, causing a Medicaid penalty period. Future Care Consultants v. M.D. (N.J. Super. Ct., App. Div., No. A-4565-17T1, July 5, 2019). M.D. cared for her.. read more →

New Jersey appeals court allows an assisted living facility pursue a tortious interference with contractual relationship claim against a discharged resident’s son after the son refused to move his mother out of the nursing home or allow her to discuss her removal with the facility staff. The Orchards at Bartley Assisted Living v. Schleck (N.J… read more →

A New Jersey appeals court held that a nursing home is not entitled to summary judgment in a case alleging breach of the admissions agreement against a resident’s son based solely on the fact that Medicaid denied the resident’s application due to excess resources. Meridian Nursing and Rehabilitation Inc. v. Skwara (N.J. Super. Ct., App. Div., No… read more →

For additional information concerning nursing home law and litigation, visit: Nursing Home Law and Litigation read more →

Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. (https://vanarellilaw.com/) participated in the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s “2018 Elder Law in a Day” Seminar held on July 11, 2018 at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick, NJ. Mr. Vanarelli provided the “Case Law Update: The Year In Review” – a review of the cases decided.. read more →

The following blog post is adapted from an article on NJ.com: A few years ago, Tracey Mitchell’s dad needed to go into a nursing home. Mitchell had no complaints about the care he received, but three months before he died, a surprise arrived via regular mail. It was a lawsuit alleging Mitchell owed $49,000 to the.. read more →

Before Mr. Trotman was admitted to a nursing home, he resided in a home that he owned. He had difficulty maintaining the home and paying the bills, so his daughter began paying his bills in 2007. In December 2011, Mr. Trotman asked his daughter to assume full responsibility for the property, which then was also.. read more →

A Superior Court judge in Ocean County dismissed a lawsuit filed by a nursing home for unpaid bills against a power of attorney appointed by a former resident, and ordered the nursing home to pay legal fees incurred by the power of attorney, ruling that the law prohibited the nursing home from requiring the power.. read more →

As many hospital patients have discovered, there are huge financial implications when a hospital designates one of its patients as an outpatient on “observation status.” In order to receive Medicare coverage for a subsequent nursing home stay, Medicare requires that the patient first have a three-day inpatient stay. The “observation status” designation is an outpatient.. read more →

Nursing home resident Joseph Gamma died after falling off his bed at the facility. His estate sued the nursing home. One of the claims the estate asserted was that the nursing home had violated the New Jersey Nursing Home Responsibilities and Residents’ Right Act (“the Nursing Home Act”). At the conclusion of the trial, the.. read more →

Applying New Jersey’s filial support law, an appeals court in Pennsylvania affirmed a decision denying a Pennsylvania residential facility’s effort to hold the elderly New Jersey parents of an adult resident liable for the unpaid balance of his specialized services. Melmark v. Schutt (Pa. Super., No. 2253 EDA 2016, July 19, 2017). New Jersey resident Alexander (Alex).. read more →

Kindred v. Clark involves two Kentucky cases, in which family members of deceased Kindred nursing home residents, Joe Wellner and Olive Clark, filed lawsuits against Kindred. They alleged that Kindred’s substandard care led to the deaths of the decedents. In response, the nursing home moved to dismiss the cases, claiming that arbitration agreements barred the.. read more →