Coronavirus has hit nursing homes hard. Now they are trying to not get sued
As deadly coronavirus outbreaks are linked to nursing homes, there’s a push to prevent them from getting sued.
Health care industry advocates say the facilities lacked the proper testing and equipment to help stop the spread of infections, multiple news outlets reported.
“They’re dealing with certain situations here that are out of their control,” Cory Kalleheim of LeadingAge, a trade group representing services for older adults, told NPR.
In hard-hit states like California, nursing homes also help free space for hospital patients, the Los Angeles Times reported.
At least six states already offer legal immunity to nursing homes in the age of coronavirus, and a half dozen other states have some type of protection for health care professionals, according to NBC News.
Allegations of serious neglect could still end up in court, the news outlet reports.
Opposing immunity
The possibility of skirting lawsuits doesn’t sit well with everyone.
“Providing blanket immunity to nursing homes for any kind of substandard care, abuse or neglect is an extremely poor and dangerous idea anytime and particularly so in regard to COVID-19,” Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long-Term Care Community Coalition, told NPR.
To some, the health care industry is getting a pass, according to news outlets.
“It is shameful,” John Burris, an attorney for the family of a nursing home resident who died in California, told the Los Angeles Times. “It incentivizes bad conduct.”
After a COVID-19 outbreak at a Seattle-area nursing home, a former resident’s daughter filed a lawsuit, claiming her mom died after the Life Care Center told her the resident physician hadn’t been at the facility, McClatchy News reported. The center said it wouldn’t comment on pending legal action.
Across the country, almost 12,000 coronavirus-related deaths have been linked to nursing homes, according to NBC News. To help stop the spread of the disease, North Carolina, Tennessee and other states have taken measures to close care facilities to the public.
In addition to limiting visitors, health officials recommend nursing homes frequently check for coronavirus symptoms and let sick workers stay home.
“Given their congregate nature and resident population served (e.g., older adults often with underlying chronic medical conditions), nursing home populations are at the highest risk of being affected by COVID-19,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
This story was originally published April 27, 2020 at 8:32 AM with the headline "Coronavirus has hit nursing homes hard. Now they are trying to not get sued."
