Juries typically recognize that nursing home abuse causes severe consequences and permanent emotional scarring, and occurs due to preventable mistakes or intentional harm. As a result, some cases close with a seven-figure award amount that the harmed elder and their family absolutely deserves. A recently proposed bill could counteract progress, though, by seriously limiting how much a plaintiff can collect in noneconomic damages for successful nursing home abuse claims.

HR Bill 1215, which is being advertised as the “Protecting Access to Care Act of 2017,” would limit noneconomic damages in nursing home abuse cases to just $250,000, regardless of the details of the case. The number of victims, the extent of the harm, and the intent of the abuser would all be irrelevant if this bill is allowed to pass. Even in cases where an elder is sexually abused repeatedly, the noneconomic cap would be just $250,000.

Nursing home abuse and neglect can take many forms, including the familiar types of wrongdoing such as physical and emotional abuse, neglecting basic needs, and financial exploitation. While families may be generally aware of these issues when choosing an assisted care facility for their elderly loved one, few give a second thought to another more sinister and inexcusable type of abuse: sexual assault.

While the inability or unwillingness of the elderly to speak out about sexual assault makes it inherently difficult to determine the true number of sexual abuse victims in American nursing homes, a recent investigative analysis by CNN has found that the issue is more common than most would believe, and that the procedures in place that should protect victims often fail to do so.

At Shrager & Sachs, our Philadelphia nursing home abuse attorneys have extensive experience representing elderly victims and their loved ones after they were harmed by substandard care, negligence, and abuse at nursing homes – and we have recovered millions of dollars in compensation on their behalves. Having worked many of these cases, we understand the difficulties of identifying abuse, as well as the challenges of holding nursing home facilities and staff accountable.

According to CNN, the difficulty of identifying sexual abuse in nursing homes and assisted living facilities can be far more troublesome than recognizing the signs of other forms of abuse. Additionally, when allegations were made by residents, nursing homes, law enforcement, and even government officials often failed to thoroughly investigate and address issues.

Mobile phones, nursing homes, credit cards, and now bank accounts that you never even agreed to have opened in your name!? Corporate America is using forced arbitration clauses buried on many of the contracts you agree to every day to close the courthouse door in your face. These oppressive “fine print” clauses, which most people never read, are potent tools used to limit your right to sue and effectively recover against big corporations. Why do they use these clauses?

1. Because they win far more often in front of the arbitrators who get huge volumes of business arbitrating these cases
2. Because people cannot afford to pay for a private judicial system (arbitration costs money unlike the free and open court system)
3. Because the results of arbitrations are secret and corporations won’t suffer bad publicity regardless of the outcome
4. All of the above.

If you guessed “D”, you are absolutely correct. The only way to force Wells Fargo to do the right thing and live up to the promise they have made to Congress is for every consumer to insist on the right to proceed in court instead of being buried in a private arbitration system. If you are a Wells Fargo customer, tell them that you reject any arbitration clause on your account. If they will not agree to strike the clause, MOVE YOUR ACCOUNT!

If you have any questions regarding these issues or believe you have become a victim of forced arbitration clauses, contact our legal team at Shrager, Spivey & Sachs!

As elders become physically and mentally incapable of caring for themselves, many people put their elderly loved ones into a nursing home. Nursing homes are designed to provide medical care and various forms of therapy so that the occupants of that nursing home are as healthy as possible despite ages and conditions. Majority of occupants in nursing homes do not need hospital care, but need to be watched over and tended to several times a day. Oftentimes, unfortunately, many nursing homes fail to provide the appropriate services,committing acts of abuse and neglect, which may cause detrimental outcomes for elderly patients.

The Definition of Abuse:

• The Federal nursing home regulations define abuse as a deliberate infliction, unnecessary confinement, intimidation, deprivation of care and service, or punishments that cause physical harm, pain, and mental anguish.

The Definition of Neglect:

• The Federal nursing home regulations define neglect as a failure to provide a resident with the necessary care and service that ensure the resident freedom from harm, pain, and emotional distress.

After the Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit against Golden Gate National Senior Care due to alleged inadequate care, poorly trained staff members, and not enough staff members in 14 different nursing home facilities, the Auditor General and the Department of Health (DOH) formed a task force to review the state regulations of these facilities over a six-month period.

Currently, the DOH is permitted to place provisional statuses on facilities not performing up to par. During this period, the nursing home is able to operate but must be monitored by the DOH while the facility makes improvements to ensure the health and safety of residents. In addition, the DOH is able to ban admissions, initiate civil penalties, and revoke the nursing home’s license. Due to the increase in nursing home safety concerns over the last decade, the task force has been given the responsibility to reform regulations so that nursing homes are forced to abide by stricter standards.

More than half of seniors admit to not taking their medications as directed. For those living alone, this can be due to a variety of factors. For a senior living in a nursing home, this can be a result of poor oversight by the facility. Almost half of Americans age 65 years and older take at least five different prescription medications regularly, according to a recent study from Kelton Research. When a senior is taking a variety of medications in different dosages over an extended period of time, frequently they can make mistakes or miss a day.

When a senior moves into a nursing home or assisted living facility, it is usually because of a loss of independence resulting from declining health. So it’s more important to these individuals to take all of their medications as directed by their physicians and it’s up to the staff of the senior care facility to ensure this. All too often, we receive calls from loved ones detailing the injuries or worse that are a result of improper medication administration.

One of our areas of special focus arises from one of the greatest crimes against humanity: obtaining justice for elderly who are abused or neglected. We’ve all heard the horror stories and listened to friends struggling to find a great assisted living or nursing home facility for their parents or loved ones. Putting your trust in strangers to care for your aging family members is a daunting prospect. Because too often, the care they receive is sub-par or even criminal.

As reported in the Philadelphia Daily News on February 20th, “In Philadelphia and across the nation, elder abuse – physical, financial, sexual or by neglect – is a growing problem, yet it dwells in the shadows of the better-publicized crimes of child abuse and domestic abuse, advocates say.”