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Protect your parents from nursing home abuses

Clark recently discussed how he was furious over kangaroo court arbitrations in the corporate world. Many banks force customers into these joke arbitrations that are worthy of a banana republic. Of course, the financial institutions routinely select arbitrators that rule in their favor.

Days after his initial comments, The Wall Street Journal did a story about nursing homes that harm or kill people through negligence. Surviving family members have no recourse because they signed mandatory arbitration clauses when they were admitting their loved ones. It's getting to the point that nursing homes have no incentive to not kill people; there's nothing families can do after the fact.

The Wall Street Journal is not exactly a bleeding heart liberal publication, but they're very angry over this. So what can you do to protect yourself before you put a loved one in a nursing home? They suggest you carefully vet the admission contract and see if you can opt out of the mandatory arbitration clause. If you can't avoid it, try writing the following next to the clause: "I'm signing this because I was told that I have to." That creates the possibility that you can potentially get out of mandatory arbitration in the event your loved one is harmed or killed while in their care. The thing with the banks was bad enough, but it's a whole different story if they kill your mama.

Last year, Clark told you that nursing homes were using multiple holding companies behind the scenes to limit their liability. There are a lot of things going on in this industry that are unacceptable in a decent society, according to Clark. Interestingly, the demand for beds in nursing homes has been far lower than what demographers anticipated. That's because more families are choosing in-home care options for their elders. You need to feel confident about who's caring for your senior loved ones.


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What others are saying

  • Feeling powerless
    It's maddening to read the PR from the corporation that manages the home where my mother lives, and then to hear, from her, what it's REALLY like there. Of course, until we start rewarding our nursing aides (not to meantion teachers, public safety pros, etc.) like we reward our CEOs, they will hate their dead-end difficult jobs and will probably take it out on our parents and, eventually, us.
  • Nursing Homes
    Many nursing homes are "for profit" entities. Therefore, they make more money the less they spend on residents--even though they are surveyed by the state in which they operate. Instead, try to find a nursing home that is affiliated with a local hospital or is "nonprofit" in status. Any profit earned by the nursing home is funneled back into care of the residents (vs. paid to stakeholders as in a for profit situation). Always ask to see the last state report that cites any deficiencies that were found on the last inspection and ask about the action plan the home inititated to resolve the deficiency.
  • What do you think about local governments installing speed cameras to automatically ticket drivers?
    The pole results don't surprise me because most of us would think that way, but in countries like Brazil where it is used every few miles, they are dead serious about it. You can rack up $500 a day in fines and after a few of them you will have so many points on your drivers license, that it will be pulled. So you guys that say, "I'd just keep on speeding", dream on. You will have a very short and expensive driving career!
  • arbitration
    Who said this was a decent society? The government is a bunch of lazy incompetent administrators. The administration including the evil prime minister, Chaney, is such a bunch of lying crooks.
  • NURSING HOMES
    THANKS AGAIN! CLARK YOU ARE WONDERFUL!
  • Nursing Homes
    I worked in a Nursing Home in Seattle, WA for 14 years before moving to GA a couple of years ago.
    I can tell you that I worked for a large chain and signing the arbitration agreement was always voluntary. I am astonded that it is mandatory in any nursing home.
  • Assisted living nursing homes
    It is good to see you highlight but one more area where the corporations have attempted to rule in America. Keep up the good work, Clark.
  • nursing home abuses
    Clark is right on this issue. My mother died from the pressure wounds she got while rehabbing from surgery in a nursing home. The doctor actually listed "pressure wounds" as a cause of death. I stupidly signed an arbitration agreement when she entered the home, thinking that it made sense and would be an efficient way to settle an argument if the need arose. WRONG! After her death I filed a lawsuit against the home, which is large and has deep pockets--not a small mom and pop operation. My lawyer's first plan of action was to get out of the arbitration agreement. That has taken THREE YEARS in court, but we finally won and will get to have a jury trial so my family can get justice for the injuries they caused due to their neglect. But here's the kicker--the state of Tennessee is now considering a law REQUIRING arbitration to protect nursing homes "from predator lawyers", and letters to the editor from regular folks are running in favor of the nursing homes. There's a good chance that this law will pass, and there won't be a chance for justice for the person who was injured. So I hope that the Wall Street Journal article and Clark's warning will open people's eyes. NEVER SIGN AN ARBITRATION AGREEMENT!

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