Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009

Robin Bara — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 11:23:00 GMT

In March 2009, The Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009 (HR 1237) was introduced to the House. The act prohibits nursing homes from inconspicuously placing mandatory arbitration clauses in its contract, which are often overlooked by family members when signing the forms.

These clauses waive the families' rights to a jury trial, which means that if a loved one is injured or dies from neglect while in the care of the facility, the family is forced to have their case heard by an arbitrator and not a jury.

“The Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act will make sure negligent nursing home corporations can be held accountable by our most vulnerable citizens,” said American Association for Justice President Les Weisbrod. “This bill will prevent nursing home corporations from unfairly preying on seniors and stripping away their legal rights. Arbitration should only be voluntarily, not hidden away in the fine print of contracts during our seniors’ greatest time of need.”

The Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009 will help people like Minnesota resident Dean Cole, who received unconscionable care from a negligent nursing corporation. Suffering from dementia, Dean needed help eating meals every day; but during his 22 day residency, Dean lost 20.6 pounds without his physician or wife ever being notified. After being admitted to the hospital, he was found to be severely dehydrated, with a water deficit near 10 liters. Dean died less than a month later. His family sought justice by bringing a suit against the nursing home for negligent care, but learned they would be forced into one-sided mandatory binding arbitration on the corporation’s own terms and denied the right to trial by jury. The case is still pending.

Although arbitrators are supposed to be unbiased, they are in fact a business, and the nursing homes are the repeat clients. As such, the arbitration may be one sided and the families of the family of the victim is left with little to no recourse.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Robin Bara

Abusive Arbitration Clauses in Nursing Home Contracts

Karl Truman — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 09:06:58 GMT

A recent article in The Advocate by the Kentucky Justice Association discussed nursing home contracts that contain mandatory arbitration clauses. These clauses require claims against the facility to be brought before a private arbitrator, instead of a public court. These even include claims for abuse or neglect.

Mandatory arbitration clauses may or may not be enforcable. Some of the factors a court may consider include:

Did the resident agree to arbitrate claims against the nursing home?

Did both parties assent to arbitration?

If the resident signed the agreement on her own behalf, did she have the capacity to do so?

If someone other than the resident signed the contract, did that person sign on behalf of the resident and have authority to bind the resident to arbitration?

Did the signatory sign the agreemetn on behalf of the residetn, versus on her own behalf?

When a loved one enters a nursing home, few people would worry about the fine print in the contract. But, it is important to understand what you are sigining. Arbtration clauses give away many important rights you may have in bringing a claim.

A good starting point to research nursing homes is www.medicare.gov/NHCompare/Include/DataSection/Questions/SearchCriteriaNEW.asp

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Karl Truman

Louisville Personal Injury Lawyer - Nursing Home & Elder Abuse

Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009

Abusive Arbitration Clauses in Nursing Home Contracts