In the last few years, thousands of nursing homes have been purchased by private investment firms. The goal of investment firms is to maximize profits for their owners and shareholders. A recent New York Times investigation found that these investment firms frequently cut nursing home expenses and staff, sometimes below the minimum level required by law, to maximize profits.
Two Congressional Committees have just announced that they will be investigating the business practices of these investment firms in running nursing homes. This is very important to protect the rights of our vulnerable elderly population. Furthermore, the government has a real interest in the outcome of this investigation because it pays much of the nation’s nursing home bills through its Medicare and Medicaid programs.
We have been involved in dozens of lawsuits against these new investment firm owned nursing homes. It has become apparent that they routinely attempt to escape liability by transferring ownership of assets to multiple different corporations. Sometimes, we have found that the actual nursing home involved in patient abuse or neglect owns nothing and has little or no insurance. The assets have all been transferred to one or more “holding” companies. As a result, the nursing home claims to have no assets with which to satisfy a damage award against it.
It is important in such cases to employ a law firm with experience in successfully unraveling these complicated corporate relationships so that meaningful recovery can be obtained. We have been involved in many such cases. If we can assist you or a loved one in this regard, please contact us for a free consultation.
