More than 91 % of U.S. nursing homes were cited last year for violating at least one federal health and safety law in each of the past three years,  the-new-york-times reported recently. During the same time period, a greater percentage of for-profit nursing homes were cited for violations than not-for-profit and government nursing homes. About.. read more →

New Jersey’s Office of Administrative Law recently issued a significant ruling that may make it easier to qualify for Medicaid. In K.R. vs. Somerset County Board of Social Services, O.A.L Docket No. HMA 12343-07 (Aug. 25, 2008),  New Jersey’s Office of Administrative Law ruled that an account titled to a Medicaid applicant “or” another person.. read more →

Federal law allows nursing homes to evict residents for six reasons: they are healthy enough to return home; they require care not offered at the nursing home; they risk the health of other residents or staff; they endanger the safety of other residents or staff; they do not pay their bills; or the nursing home.. read more →

Nursing homes will get a “star rating” from the federal government to help consumers pick the best facilities. It is expected that this sweeping governmental initiative may create “peer pressure” among owners to improve care. The ratings, from a low of one star to a high of five, will be posted starting in December 2008.. read more →

A recent article in the NJ Lawyer newspaper examined the safeguards in federal and state law designed to protect elderly, infirm and disabled nursing home residents from involuntary transfers or discharges from their care facilities. According to federal law, a nursing home can discharge a resident only for the following reasons: The resident’s health has.. read more →

Hundreds of health care workers braved windswept rain outside the Statehouse recently to protest nearly $200 million in proposed cuts to hospitals and nursing homes. Many wore surgical masks that read, “These cuts make me sick.” Most of the hospital cuts proposed in Gov. Jon Corzine’s budget would come from money the state provides to.. read more →

I recently read two interesting articles and a study on the ever-increasing costs of long-term care, both in the nation and New Jersey. The articles are found in the Houston-Chronicle and the Star-Ledger, while the study, in which researchers examined data from more than 10,000 nursing homes, assisted living facilities and in-home care providers nationwide… read more →