California Nursing Home Laws

California Nursing Home Law

At Young & Wallin, we deal with questions about nursing home abuse every day. As attorneys, we do our best to answer them and to keep clients informed from the very beginning of their case. We also think it is important for clients to understand the laws that govern nursing home institutions and how those laws are designed to protect people and their loved ones.

The information provided below details the legislation and licensing requirements which fall under the general category of California Nursing Home Law.

An Overview of Elder Law

The Nursing Home Reform Act

Nursing home law is generally governed by the 1987 Nursing Home Reform Act, a set of laws that establish the standards of care for elder nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The Nursing Home Reform Act was adopted to protect residents from neglect, abuse, and mistreatment and commands that all facilities provide:

• Individual care plans for each resident
• Nursing services, including a certain number of nursing hours per resident per day
• Social services
• Pharmaceutical and medication services
• Nutritional and dietary services
• In facilities with more than 120 beds, a full-time social worker
• Rehabilitative services

Failure to meet these requirements or provide such services can result in the loss of government funding for these facilities.

California Department of Social Services: Title 22

Title 22 spells out the licensing requirements for nursing homes in California. Safe and healthful living accommodations; personal assistance and care; observation and supervision; planned activities; food service; and arrangements for obtaining incidental medical and dental care are all required. Our lawyers have a comprehensive knowledge of Title 22 and can help you to understand the sections relevant to nursing home facilities.

California's Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act (EADACPA)

This legislation was originally adopted by California in 1990. The 1991 amendment is a useful tool that aids lawyers in eradicating elder abuse, as it allows plaintiffs in nursing home abuse cases to seek punitive damages and attorneys' fees. Abuse under an EADACPA claim is a civil action that may include "physical abuse, neglect, fiduciary abuse, abandonment, isolation or other treatment with resulting physical harm or pain or mental suffering, the deprivation by a care custodian of goods or services which are necessary to avoid physical harm or mental suffering."

Dignity and Justice — Call 1-888-444-7210

For answers to other questions you have about California nursing home law — call our Los Angeles area law offices directly or contact us online right now with a brief description of your concerns. Initial consultations are free of charge and you will pay no attorneys' fees unless we are able to obtain a verdict or settlement on your behalf.