CONNECTICUT — As many as 2,500 employees at 20 nursing homes were on the brink of a strike that would begin May 1, according to local reports.
Workers at 20 Connecticut facilities voted 1,449 to 78 in favor of the strike in mid-April. The union was recommending a 4% raise for all nursing home caregivers in the state, including non-bargaining employees, for each of the next two fiscal years.
That would require additional budgeting of about $40 million annually, half of which would be covered by federal Medicaid payments, labor leaders projected. The rest could come from the state, they suggested.
The possibility of lower staffing levels drew the attention of lawmakers. Nursing home employees packed the state’s Legislative Office Building on April 15. State Sen. Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) told the CT Mirror that unwanted consequences would occur with fewer caregivers.
“The number of falls increase. The number of hip fractures increase and a third of the elderly with hip fractures die,” he said. “This is a matter of life and death.”
NORTHWEST
Photo reveal law debated
MONTANA — Sharing a humiliating photo of a senior citizen with disabilities could become classified as elder abuse under a proposed state law in Montana.
Sen. Tom Jacobson (D-Great Falls) is sponsoring Senate Bill 324, which would classify sharing a humiliating photo or video of a senior citizen as elder abuse. The bill applies to seniors with disabilities, which includes dementia.
The first offense of elder abuse would be a misdemeanor and come with a potential penalty of up to six months in jail and a $500 fine. Second offenses would be considered felonies, with up to 10 years’ jail time and a $10,000 fine. The Senate and House advanced the bill in April, and at production deadline it was in the House Appropriations Committee.
SOUTHEAST
EEOC pregnancy case over
NORTH CAROLINA —
PruittHealth-Raleigh LLC will pay $25,000 to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced in April.
The EEOC said that in October 2016, the company refused to accommodate a pregnant certified nursing assistant. Instead, the company’s assistant director of nursing and a human resources representative forced her to either resign or be fired, according to the lawsuit.
The facility accommodated the restrictions of other non-pregnant employees who were injured on the job and who were similar in their ability or inability to work, the EEOC said.
The commission filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina in 2018 after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement.
In addition to the $25,000, PruittHealth agreed to a two-year consent degree for a formal written policy on modifications for pregnant employees. It also agreed to give annual training to its managers and supervisors.
Lawsuit immunity revived
ARKANSAS — A nursing home hoping to claim immunity from a lawsuit because of its charitable status may have new life, thanks to a ruling from the state’s highest court.
Justices voted 4-3 to overturn an appeals court declaration that the Davis Life Care Center could not claim charitable immunity from a lawsuit, which alleged that it delivered negligent care. They argued the previous judgment should not have been left in the hands of a jury.
The “hot bubbling issues in legal circles — whether nursing homes can set up as nonprofits to avoid liability lawsuits” were not finally decided, the Arkansas Times reported in April. Justice Rhonda Wood noted that charitable immunity, if eventually granted to Arkansas SNFs, would shield providers from lawsuits and not just liabilities.
Johnny Newborn’s estate first filed suit against Davis Life Care Center in 2011. It alleged that he died wrongfully because of medical malpractice and negligence.
The facility countered that the suit could not proceed due to the doctrine of charitable immunity, which protects such organizations from lawsuits based on their actions, even if negligent. While most states have abolished the doctrine, it still stands in Arkansas.
DLCC did not respond to a McKnight’s request for comment. The Supreme Court’s ruling reversed and remanded the previous decision, and ordered a new trial, the date of which was to be determined.
Transport service sues SNF
GEORGIA — An ambulance service sued a skilled nursing facility in Augusta over staff allegedly ignoring repeated explanations that it can provide only emergency transportation.
South Star Ambulance Service operator Regional Services filed the Richmond County Superior Court lawsuit against Pruitt-Health–Augusta Hills in April. It was seeking $151,281.
From the May 1, 2019 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
