Government Launches Elder Justice Task Force in Southern District of Ohio to Target Nursing Homes Allegedly Providing Substandard Care to Residents

Ten Elder Justice Task Forces launched throughout the United States last week, including an Elder Justice Task Force in the Southern District of Ohio.
The Elder Justice Task Force will target and investigate nursing homes that allegedly provide substandard care to residents.
Nursing homes, especially those in the targeted Southern District of Ohio counties, should prepare for heightened scrutiny.

On Wednesday, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced the launch of ten regional Elder Justice Task Forces, which include a task force in the Southern District of Ohio. The Elder Justice Task Forces will target and investigate nursing homes that allegedly provide substandard care to residents and will include representatives from the U.S. Attorneys’ offices, federal, state and local prosecutors’ offices, law enforcement, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), and state Medicaid Fraud Control Units, Adult Protective Services, and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman programs. The Chief Counsel to the HHS Inspector General described how “creating these task forces sends a message to those in charge of caring for these beneficiaries that grossly substandard care will not be tolerated.”

Although few details regarding the scope of the Elder Justice Task Force are available, nursing home operators should be aware of its existence as heightened scrutiny is certain.

For more information on the Elder Justice Task Forces, see the DOJ press release, here, and the Southern District of Ohio press release, here.

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