April 17, 2008
NEWSLETTER
A non-profit organization dedicated to the welfare of the “Forgotten Kentuckians”
IT’S A SHAME, BUT….
It’s a shame that the 2008 legislature is over without any of the bills supported by advocates of nursing home reform even being considered. But on the other hand, it is heartwarming that so many supporters of reform stepped forward to let their views be made known. One legislative leader challenged our organization to demonstrate that there is public support out there for our agenda. So our members went out and got hundreds of signatures to a petition from across the state calling for minimum staffing standards. Many other advocates made telephone calls to legislators and still others sent e-mails. A few advocates even went to Frankfort themselves and buttonholed the legislators in person. It told us that there is enough interest statewide to continue the fight.
WHAT’S WRONG?
Why are advocates for change in nursing home care so often rebuffed in Frankfort? The answer is money, big money. The nursing home industry puts thousands of dollars into the pockets of legislators to do their bidding. Same thing is happening on the national level. You can imagine the huge amounts of money involved there. In addition to the nursing home industry lobbying organizations, many nursing home owners themselves plunck down significant individual donations to legislators, and then whisper in their ears, :”We don’t want any minimum staffing standards bill passed, you hear . . . ? It’s all perfectly legal. It’s the way the “system” works.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Wait for your legislator to come home. They will, and they will once again be looking for your vote. That’s your chance. Now you are in the driver’s seat because you have something – your vote – that is more important to the legislator than even all the money the nursing homes give. So when you run into your legislator in the grocery, ask him or her about supporting nursing home reform. Be specific in your request or otherwise the legislator will tend to just blow you away by saying, “Yes, I will certainly look into your concerns . . . ” But be specific, by saying, for example, “Will you vote for minimum staffing standards for nursing homes when it comes before you in 2009?” Then, if you have the time, write down the answer and e-mail it to us. We will share answers in our newsletters and in effect put the legislator on record. If the legislator says, “No, I do not support staffing standards in nursing homes,” then tell him you cannot vote for him, and let us know about that, too.
ANY GOOD NEWS OUT THERE?
Yes, there is good news about nursing home reform out there. You can say it in two words – “Steve Beshear.” Gov. Beshear is solidly behind improving care in nursing homes and instituting not only minimum staffing standards but other improvements that will make nursing home care – good or bad – transparent to the public, and do something about the chance of people with criminal backgrounds or on drugs working in nursing homes. This is the first time that a chief executive of our state has come out publicly to support the more than 23,000 Kentuckians in nursing homes. Gov. Beshear also has named a new cabinet secretary – Janie Miller --for Health and Family Services who is working with us on meaningful issues affecting the quality of care in nursing homes.
NERVOUS IN THE SERVICE
The bureaucrats in state healthcare agencies who are not merit employees, but rather political appointees of the previous administration, are a little nervous these days to find out whether the new administration will keep them on. There are important jobs occupied by these people, a number of them in the $100,000 and above salary range, so you can see why these people are nervous. Money is a big concern to the new administration, so there could be a reorganization in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Stay tuned. We will report any developments.
OTHER LEGISLATION
Four bills being pushed by Kentuckians For Nursing Home Reform, most notable of which was House Bill 109 setting minimum staffing standards for nursing homes, did not pass – in fact, they did not even get out of committee. Some of the other bills that could affect nursing home residents were:
House Bill 602, sponsored by Rep. Mary Lou Marzian, D-Louisville, encourages employees of nursing homes to report poor care without retaliation. Unfortunately it never made it out of the House, but we hope she will come back with it again next year.
Three other bills passed and were signed into law by the governor. Sen. Denise Harper Angel’s bill sets up a “Golden Alert” on radio and television stations to help find missing impaired adults . . . Sen. Gary Tapp of Shelbyville was successful in getting legislation passed requiring the reporting to the nursing board that a nurse is suspected of drug abuse . . . and a bill in the House sponsored by Rep. Jeff Greer of Brandenburg allows anyone to purchase a long-term care insurance policy and still qualify for Medicaid services without exhausting all of their personal assets.
HIP, HIP, HOORAY…..
Kentuckians For Nursing Home Reform is especially appreciative to three legislators who took the time to sponsor legislation we have been pushing. They are Rep. Carl Rollins II, D-Midway; Rep. Jim Wayne, D-Louisville; and Rep. Ruth Ann Palumbo, D-Lexington. If you see any of these lawmakers, please give them a pat on the back for their work on our behalf. There also were a whole host of co-sponsors who came forward to support these bills.
SHORT STUFF
- Advocates for getting a bill passed in the legislature on mandatory minimum staffing standards in nursing homes can take hope that the booster seat bill for children finally passed. It took a number of legislative sessions to get the job done, but House Health and Welfare Committee chairman Tom Burch was elated it happened, even though it was “a watered down version,” in his opinion. He had pushed the bill for a number of years. Rep. Burch might turn his considerable energies and influence now to getting the mandatory minimum staffing standards bill passed which also has languished in the legislature for some four or five years with nothing happening.
- Nursing homes spend tons of money lobbying lawmakers in Kentucky and Washington. This is the main reason that mandatory staffing standards are effectively blocked. For example, a recent report revealed that Kindred Healthcare, the big nursing home company headquartered in Louisville spent more than $1 million lobbying the federal government last year. We don’t have the figures for Kentucky, but the federal report came from The Associated Press. The industry in Kentucky has dozens of lobbyists who camp out at the legislature in Frankfort each year making sure nothing bad (in their opinions) happens to them. Another report says that the big nursing home national lobbying group, called AHCA, spent about $1.7 million lobbying the federal government.
- The feds have awarded the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (called SHIP) a grant of more than $700,000 to continue an information services program. By contacting an area agency on aging or by calling, toll free, 877-293-7447, citizens can get their questions and concerns about Medicare and Medicaid answered.
- The Office of Inspector General, the agency responsible for checking nursing home compliance with federal and state laws and regulations is operating at last count with only 54 inspectors statewide in the four regional offices. This is far short of the number needed, some observers say, to ensure a good enforcement program. The agency also has a new inspector general, Sadigua N. Reynolds. You can reach her office with your complaints by calling (502) 564-7963.
- There still are 16 long-term care facilities in Kentucky that have no fire safety sprinkler system or they are only partially sprinklered. They range from Paducah to Pineville. Three of them have no sprinkler system at all. Cabinet for Health and Family Services spokesman Eric Friedlander says, however, that all facilities in Kentucky as required by the Federal Life Safety Code have sprinklers or are partially sprinklered. Apparently the 16 who now are not in complete compliance get away with it under a grandfather clause in the regulations.
- Get this. According to state long-term care ombudsman Jacqueline Strader, there is a nursing home in Lexington that pipes the scent of bread baking through the facility into its residents’ rooms to make the facility, we guess, smell more like home. This was an example Ms. Strader gave when explaining a new statewide program she hopes to start soon promoting person-centered care. Training for nursing home ombudsmen across the state will begin next month, Ms. Strader said. Hopefully, they will be able to take the program to nursing homes throughout the state. The new effort will cost the state no significant extra money, she added. Also, nursing homes will be asked to share information about how the program has helped them, such as cutting down on turnover of staff.
YOUR DOLLARS CAN HELP
This Newsletter is published by Kentuckians for Nursing Home Reform, a non-profit organization comprised of volunteers working to improve the lives of the 23,000 "Forgotten Kentuckians" destined to live out their lives at the mercy of nursing homes. If you would like to assist in our charitable work by helping underwrite expenses of conducting educational seminars, lobbying for residents' rights in the state legislature, or publishing informative materials, you may send your contribution to Kentuckians For Nursing Home Reform, 1530 Nicholasville Rd., Lexington KY 40503. Contributions are tax deductible as allowed by law. Or if you want to volunteer your services, as many of you have, write to the same address or e-mail KyNursingHomeReform@yahoo.com.
MEMORIALIZE YOUR LOVED ONES
KENTUCKIANS FOR NURSING HOME REFORM is now officially a non-profit organization. That means that any donations to the organization are tax deductible by the donor. With that in mind, we offer for your consideration the thought that memorials at the time of death of a loved one or friend could be in the form of donations to KENTUCKIANS FOR NURSING HOME REFORM, 1530 Nicholasville Road, Lexington, KY 40503.
THAT’S IT FOR THIS TIME, BUT DON’T FORGET . . .
MORE THAN 23,000 PEOPLE IN NURSING HOMES IN KENTUCKY NEED US. THEY ARE KENTUCKY’S “FORGOTTEN PEOPLE.”
BERNIE VONDERHEIDE
KENTUCKIANS FOR NURSING HOME REFORM
E-mail: KyNursingHomeReform@yahoo.com
Web Site: http://www.KyNursingHomeReform.org
Telephone: (859) 312-5617
P.S. - Grannies On The Road
A West Virginia State Trooper was patrolling State RT. 10 in Logan County, when he notices a car puttering along at 10 mph. He thinks to himself, “this driver is as dangerous as a speeder!”
So he turns on his lights and pulls the driver over.
Approaching the car, he notices that there are five elderly ladies -- two in the front seat and three in the back, wide-eyed and white as ghosts.
The driver, obviously confused, says to him, “Officer, I don't understand. I was going the exact posted speed limit. What seems to be the problem?”
The trooper, trying to contain a chuckle, explains to her that 10 was the route number, not the speed limit. A bit embarrassed, the woman grinned and thanked the officer for pointing out her error.
“But before you go, Ma'am, I have to ask, is everyone in this car OK? These women seem awfully shaken.”
“Oh, they'll be all right in a minute, officer. We just got off Route 119.”
—Thanks to my friend Larry Hopkins.