Herb Kohl: “This article is only the tip of the iceberg. A recent report from the Nation's long-term care Ombudsmen indicates that…”

“This article is only the tip of the iceberg. A recent report from the Nation's long-term care Ombudsmen indicates that in 29 states surveyed, 7,043 cases of abuse, gross neglect, or exploitation occurred in nursing homes and board and care facilities. Similar stories have appeared nationwide and abuse is not limited to nursing homes. It is far too easy for a health care worker with a criminal or abusive background to gain employment and prey on the most vulnerable patients. Why is this the case? Because current state and national safeguards are inadequate to screen out abusive workers. All States are required to maintain nurse aide registries which include information about abusive workers. But these registries are not comprehensive or complete. First, many facilities do not report abuse complaints and instead, simply fire the worker. Second, these registries usually do not include abuse information about home health or hospice aides. Finally, and most important, there is no national system in place to track abusers, little information sharing between States, and no Federal requirement that a criminal background check be done on potential employees. A known abuser or someone with a violent criminal background in Iowa would have little trouble moving to Wisconsin and continuing to work with patients there.”