California Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

Starting yesterday, new California regulations will require finger printing and a criminal background check for all new in-home caregivers before the caregivers can get paid. The law, enacted to help prevent fraud and elder abuse, is not being well received by many providers.

Many counties have complained that the new mandate from the state has been poorly explained, and most are unprepared to implement it.

"We've been working with the counties since the budget passed to talk through these very significant changes. We understand that the timelines are very aggressive," said Lizelda Lopez, spokeswoman for the state Department of Social Services. "But we must comply with the law."

Many counties workers have said the new laws have created chaos. For example, while the new law requires criminal background checks, most county employees are not authorized to conduct such background checks. Plus, an orientation video provided by the state is in English only, causing problems in certain communities.

The California In-home Supportive Services program has been the subject of much debate in Sacramento. Governor Schwarzenegger contends that the program is riddled with fraud, and Democrats see it as a humane and cost-effective alternative to nursing homes.

Source: TheCalifornian.com

The nursing home abuse and neglect lawyers at the Walton Law Firm represent individuals and families who have been abused or neglected in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, or by in-home caregivers. Call (866) 607-1325 for a free consultation.

The City of San Marcos has partnered with Cal State San Marcos to put on the Because I Care resource fair. The fair will be held September 6, 2008 from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at the San Marcos Senior Center located at 111 Richmar Ave., San Marcos, 92078.

The fair will hold 20 workshops on aging, family caregiving, and living healthy lives. Representatives from the Alzheimer’s Association, the Southern Caregivers Resource Center and the UCSD Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center will be there.

For more information, and the agenda for the day's events, click here.

According to estimates, there are about 1.6 million people in the United States employed to provide home care for the elderly, and advocates for the elderly say the cases of abuse, neglect, and fraud by home caregivers is growing at an alarming rate. The increase is prompting calls for more government oversight as home-care assistance grows along side the aging baby boomers, and the desire of people to avoid nursing homes.

Because the bulk of home care is being provided by non-licensed or certified nurses, who are typically regulated under state, home caregiver frequently have no training, receive minimal pay, and loosely supervised. In California, home aides who do not provide medical care are not even required to pass a criminal background check.

To research the problem, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid funded a study that screened 214,167 people who held jobs provided assistance to the elderly and discovered that over 5,000 of them had criminal histories. Advocates for the elderly are advising consumers to verify background checks from any agency that offers home care services, and those who hire directly are strongly encouraged to check references.

Walton Law Firm LLP represents victims of nursing home neglect throughout Southern California, including the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino.