A recent federal investigation commissioned by four senators found “huge gaps” in the regulation of assisted living facilities in the U.S. Investigators report that the care of hundreds of thousands of patients in assisted living facilities has been “potentially jeopardized.”
The New York Times which reviewed the report by the Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress, revealed that it found the federal government lacking even the most basic information about the quality of care provided to Medicaid recipients. According to the report, states reported spending more than $10 billion a year for assisted living for more than 330,000 people, more than $30,000 per person.
States are supposed to keep track of cases involving the abuse, neglect, exploitation or unexplained death of Medicaid beneficiaries in assisted living facilities. But, the report said, more than half of the states were unable to provide information on the number or nature of such cases. Just 22 states had data on more than 22,900 incidents, including the physical, emotional or sexual abuse of residents. For more, read the story.
