Some Assisted-Living Residents Don’t Get Promised Care, Suit Charges

The plaintiffs’ complaint, filed in 2017 and now before the U.S. District Court for Central California, argues that when staff members conduct such periodic assessments — to determine whether a resident needs help bathing or dressing, for example, or suffers from dementia — the facilities don’t use the results to determine an adequate number of staff members.

Instead, the plaintiffs argue, administrators make staffing decisions financially, based on budgets and return on investment. When assessments show increasing needs, the suit alleges, fees rise but staffing ratios may not change.

“People pay more, but they’re not getting more care,” Ms. Stebner said.

The suit claims that Sunrise is misrepresenting its practices and deceiving customers, in violation of state business statutes, and lacks enough trained staff members to deliver the care specified in resident contracts and marketing materials.

“The business model is fraudulent, and it’s putting people at risk,” Ms. Stebner said.

Sunrise’s practices are unlawful in another way, as well, the suit charges. “If you take an elder’s property, knowing it could harm them, that’s financial elder abuse,” Ms. Stebner said. “In this case, they’re taking their money.”

In an emailed statement, Sunrise denounced “baseless lawsuits like these, in which the plaintiffs’ lawyers file copycat allegations,” a reference to the firms having brought four previous suits using essentially the same tactics. Sunrise called the claims “categorically false.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/14/health/assisted-living-staffing.html?emc=rss&partner=rss