Nursing Home Abuse Lawsuits

Elder abuse is not a new problem, and it’s common, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While elder abuse can occur anywhere, a growing number of nursing home residents experience abuse.

About 1.3 million Americans lived in nursing homes in 2015, according to the CDC.

Nearly 1 in 3 nursing homes were cited for violations, according to data cited by the National Center on Elder Abuse. About 1 in 10 homes had violations that caused serious injury or harm. Some of these injuries were serious enough to be life threatening.

Over the years, thousands of people have filed nursing home lawsuits to seek compensation for injured loved ones. These lawsuits can help families hold nursing homes accountable for negligence and abuse.

Forty-four percent of nursing home residents reported being abused, and 95 percent reported that they were neglected or had seen another resident neglected, according to NCEA.

About fifty percent of nursing home staff admitted to mistreating residents in a study cited by NCEA. Neglect was the most common type of mistreatment.

Signs of nursing home abuse or neglect can be physical and mental.

If you suspect a person is in life-threatening or immediate danger, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends calling 911 right away.

Concerned people can contact the local Adult Protective Services, Long-term Care Ombudsman or police. The National Center on Elder Abuse has resources to help you report abuse.

You can also visit Medicare.gov for tips on reporting nursing home problems.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, elder abuse claims climbed. More than 37,000 nursing home residents had died of coronavirus by March 31, 2020, according to ABC News. Some say inadequate staffing and lack of protections led to the deaths.

Some families are filing lawsuits.

For example, one California family filed suit against Redwood Springs Healthcare Center after their father died. The suit alleges willful misconduct, elder abuse and wrongful death, according to McKnight’s Senior Living. The family is asking for more than $25,000 in damages.

But suing a nursing home may be challenging because health care facilities and health care professionals have certain protections during the pandemic.

A lawyer can help people file a nursing home lawsuit. These types of cases are handled on a contingency basis, which means the law firm doesn’t get paid unless they win a settlement or verdict.

Statutes of limitations vary by state, and people have anywhere from one to six years to file a nursing home abuse lawsuit. So it’s important to consult an attorney as soon as possible to preserve the right to file.

Just like most lawsuits, nursing home claims can take a while to resolve. Most attorneys say these cases can take anywhere from 18 to 24 months. If the case goes to trial, it may take longer.

If there is a jury verdict, either party can appeal the decision if they don’t agree with the outcome.

In order to successfully litigate a nursing home abuse case, a plaintiff must prove several things. This is called the burden of proof.

Nursing homes may defend themselves by saying that the resident’s injury was inevitable because of their poor health.

Damages included in nursing home abuse lawsuits range from medical bills to, very rarely, punitive damages. Plaintiffs get punitive damages if they prove the nursing home’s conduct was grossly negligent and intentional. These damages punish the defendant for wrongdoing.

Each case is different and it is difficult to estimate a case’s value.

Generally, the amount of the settlement depends on the victim’s damages or the surviving family’s damages in a wrongful death case. Wrongful death cases tend to have higher settlement and verdict amounts.

Some attorneys say settlements may range from $50,000 to more than $250,000 on average. But some verdicts have been in the millions.