Is Texas the Worst State for Nursing Home Abuse?

A KVUE Defenders investigation uncovered cases of nursing home neglect on the rise across Texas. The investigation also discovered that facilities repeatedly cited for violations rarely see their contracts terminated with the state, despite getting millions in taxpayer dollars. According to the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS), deficiencies involving Texas nursing homes jumped from 14,215 in 2011 to 15,113 in 2012. The most severe violations, which put patients in immediate danger, increased by 35 percent. "This is crisis mode right now for Texas," said Brian Lee, Executive Director for Families for Better Care. Earlier this year, the nonprofit released what it says is the first comprehensive state-by-state review of nursing home care. It calculated its grades using data from Medicaid. The analysis involved staffing numbers, inspections, deficiencies, and complaints. Texas failed. "There should be alarms going off all over the place in Texas right now, because it's the worst nursing home state by far," Lee told KVUE.

Source/more: KVUE News