Nursing homes are a necessity of life for many families. Whether an older person doesn’t have any family members who can care for them, their family are too busy, don’t possess the requisite skills, or don’t have the room; hundreds of thousands of people are admitted to nursing homes each year. While most nursing homes hire caring, diligent staff members to care for residents, that is unfortunately not always the case.
When a family sets out to select a nursing home, there is only so much they can do in terms of due diligence. So much of what goes on in a nursing home is behind closed doors. Perhaps it’s not surprising that many nursing homes take affirmative efforts to hide instances of abuse and neglect. However, what’s more concerning is a recent report from the New York Times indicating that the federal government knew about instances of physical and sexual abuse and failed to inform the public.
Do nursing homes have a legal obligation to report abuse and neglect?