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