Media Release

For Immediate Release
Date: February 16, 2005
Contact: Donald C. Williams, Associate Director, 222-1600

Health Department Welcomes Auditor General’s Report on Nursing Home Regulation

The Department of Health welcomes the Auditor General’s Performance Audit of its nursing facilities regulation program released earlier today. While the Department met most federal requirements, the report confirms that the Department did not perform all surveys or meet timeframes required by state law—which the Auditor General concluded was principally due to limited resources.

Reflecting on the Auditor General’s efforts, Dr. Patricia A. Nolan, Director of Health, stated, “This Performance Audit provides the Department, the General Assembly, the Administration and the general public with a thorough review of the Department’s implementation of state and federal requirements for nursing home regulation. By fully cooperating in the review, we were able to get recommendations that were both objective and helpful. We take the recommendations very seriously and already started to implement recommended improvements—such as increasing the number of inspectors. We want the public to know that we care deeply about every nursing home resident and plan to do everything in our power to assure the health and safety of each one.”

The report finds the Department focuses primarily on the federally-funded enforcement of national standards. State mandated standards, frequently more restrictive, are often not met—which the Auditor General concluded was principally due to limited resources within the Office of Health Facilities Regulation (OFR). For example, the Auditor General estimated that meeting the state-mandated seven-day complaint investigation timeframe may require as many as 11 staff (out of 25 current field surveyor positions) dedicated just to this task. The audit also makes several constructive suggestions for improvements in tracking deficiencies, processing complaints and monitoring the financial soundness of nursing homes—the latter in conjunction with the Department of Human Services. The report urges a reexamination whether the state requirement for more frequent inspections is appropriate (compared to federal mandates) and a consideration of a risk-based approach to determining additional inspections. The report noted that OFR is responsible for regulating 594 other entities in addition to the 102 licensed nursing facilities.

The Auditor General’s report also recommended further study of other related matters that do not fall solely within the Department of Health’s jurisdiction.