Search Articles

Find Attorneys

Florida Governor Heeds Nursing Home Industry and Fires Advocate for Elderly

Florida governor Rick Scott is making headlines for canceling the state's high-speed train project, but in another, less-noticed move he may be derailing protections for long-term care residents by firing their chief advocate in the state. The decision, an apparent capitulation to the wishes of the long-term care industry, has alarmed resident advocates, who fear a decline in their ability to protect the institutionalized elderly from substandard care and abuse.

"We are very concerned that the governor of Florida has yielded to industry demands to dismiss an effective advocate for residents in a state that so many elderly Americans choose as their retirement home," said Sarah F. Wells, executive director of the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, in a press release.

Local Elder Law Attorneys in Your City

Elder Law Attorney

Firm Name
City, State

Elder Law Attorney

Firm Name
City, State

Elder Law Attorney

Firm Name
City, State

The ousted advocate, Brian Lee, was director of the Florida Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program, a position he had held for seven years. Every state is required to have an ombudsman program that serves as an independent voice for residents -- addressing resident complaints and advocating for improvements in the long-term care system. Florida is perhaps unique in the nation in that all of its 300 ombudsmen are volunteers, not paid employees. The volunteers make annual inspections of licensed long-term care facilities and try to resolve problems.

"The ombudsman's role is to focus very narrowly on the representation of the residents," Hank Stevens, a volunteer ombudsman in Broward County, told ElderLawAnswers. "These vulnerable citizens have no lobbyists, trade council, or collectively, any representation -- except for what the volunteer ombudsmen provide. In the process of doing that, I suspect that we are, at best, a bit of a frustration for the long-term care industry."

By all accounts the volunteers' leader, Brian Lee, was a passionate champion of the elderly, but one who crossed swords with the long-term care industry more than once. Immediately prior to his removal he had requested that the state's 677 nursing homes make public the names of their owners and operators, something that is required under the new federal health care law. Earlier, he had asked owners to demonstrate they had enough food and water set aside for residents in case of an emergency like a hurricane.

When Republican Rick Scott won the governorship, the Florida Assisted Living Association sent him a letter recommending that Lee be replaced with someone friendlier to their industry. Scott seems to have listened, although Lee was given no explanation for his removal, according to the Miami Herald. (Governor Scott's office has not responded to ElderLawAnswers' request for comment.)

In the weeks prior to Lee's firing, his army of volunteer ombudsmen worked hard to save his job. The heads of all 17 of the district offices in the state ombudsman program signed a letter to the governor calling Lee "the guiding light of the program. He has transformed the program's culture from one that was regulatory-focused to one that is now resident-centered, doing what is right for some of Florida's frailest citizens."

Fears That Oversight Will Be Compromised

Advocates in the state are worried that Lee's removal signals the start of a weakening in the ombudsman's role in protecting elderly residents of long-term care facilities.

"There is concern that members of the industry have a very strong lobby and would like to do away with many of the ombudsman's capabilities, especially the inspections of the nursing homes," said Linda Stevens, Hank Stevens's wife and also a volunteer ombudsman in Broward County. "I think politically the firing of Brian Lee is to move in the direction of lessening our capabilities to advocate for these residents."

Lee, 39, is quoted in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune as saying he was proud to have renewed the ombudsman program's focus on resident rights during his tenure.

"I'm very glad I never compromised my principles or those of the program," Lee said.

The volunteers are now reaching out to lawmakers in the state to try to win back Lee's job.

For a Miami Herald article on the Lee's removal, click here.

For more on the nation's long-term care ombudsman program, click here.


Created date: 02/16/2011
Medicaid 101
What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

READ MORE
How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

READ MORE
Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

READ MORE
What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

READ MORE
How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

READ MORE
Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

READ MORE
Medicaid Planning Strategies

Careful planning for potentially devastating long-term care costs can help protect your estate, whether for your spouse or for your children.

READ MORE
Estate Recovery: Can Medicaid Take My House After I’m Gone?

If steps aren't taken to protect the Medicaid recipient's house from the state’s attempts to recover benefits paid, the house may need to be sold.

READ MORE
Help Qualifying and Paying for Medicaid, Or Avoiding Nursing Home Care

There are ways to handle excess income or assets and still qualify for Medicaid long-term care, and programs that deliver care at home rather than in a nursing home.

READ MORE
Are Adult Children Responsible for Their Parents’ Care?

Most states have laws on the books making adult children responsible if their parents can't afford to take care of themselves.

READ MORE
Applying for Medicaid

Applying for Medicaid is a highly technical and complex process, and bad advice can actually make it more difficult to qualify for benefits.

READ MORE
Alternatives to Medicaid

Medicare's coverage of nursing home care is quite limited. For those who can afford it and who can qualify for coverage, long-term care insurance is the best alternative to Medicaid.

READ MORE
ElderLaw 101
Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

READ MORE
Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

READ MORE
Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

READ MORE
Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

READ MORE
Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

READ MORE
Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

READ MORE
Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

READ MORE
Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

READ MORE
Long-Term Care Insurance

Understand the ins and outs of insurance to cover the high cost of nursing home care, including when to buy it, how much to buy, and which spouse should get the coverage.

READ MORE
Medicare

Learn who qualifies for Medicare, what the program covers, all about Medicare Advantage, and how to supplement Medicare’s coverage.

READ MORE
Retirement Planning

We explain the five phases of retirement planning, the difference between a 401(k) and an IRA, types of investments, asset diversification, the required minimum distribution rules, and more.

READ MORE
Senior Living

Find out how to choose a nursing home or assisted living facility, when to fight a discharge, the rights of nursing home residents, all about reverse mortgages, and more.

READ MORE
Social Security

Get a solid grounding in Social Security, including who is eligible, how to apply, spousal benefits, the taxation of benefits, how work affects payments, and SSDI and SSI.

READ MORE
Special Needs Planning

Learn how a special needs trust can preserve assets for a person with disabilities without jeopardizing Medicaid and SSI, and how to plan for when caregivers are gone.

READ MORE
Veterans Benefits

Explore benefits for older veterans, including the VA’s disability pension benefit, aid and attendance, and long-term care coverage for veterans and surviving spouses.

READ MORE