Report: Nursing home system broken

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. nursing home certification system is broken and cannot be fixed, officials at the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging said.

The report's overarching recommendation is that an independent commission, such as the Institute of Medicine, re-examine the survey and certification process for nursing homes to "create a common vision for how our nation should care for its frailest citizens and to recommend a new oversight model for ensuring that this vision becomes reality in every nursing home today."

"We have to break the cycle of fear that paralyzes us all: Consumers fear nursing homes, nursing homes fear the state, states fear the federal government, the federal government fears Congress and Congress fears voters," Larry Minnix, AAHSA's president, said in a statement.

"This system is angry, broken and can't be fixed. A system based on consistency, fairness and accuracy will help us move toward the day when there are two types of nursing homes: the excellent and the non-existent."

Copies of the report are available on AAHSA's Web site at

http://www.aahsa.org/advocacy/nursing_homes/documents/SCTF_Report_FINAL.pdf.