MIAMI, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Prosecutors have begun an investigation into conditions in assisted-living facilities in the Miami area, sources told The Miami Herald.
The Miami-Dade area has more than 900 of the facilities, more than any other county in Florida, the newspaper said. A recent series by the Herald, "Neglected to Death," reported on neglect and abuse of the elderly in many of the homes.
The Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration closed only seven homes in 2008 and 2009 after finding problems in 70 that were bad enough to shut them down.
Alfredo Navas called the grand jury investigation "great news." His mother, who was 85 and suffering from dementia, drowned in a pool behind Isabel Adult Care III in 2008 after wandering outside. The home was not sanctioned for her death.
"When you really think about it, there was no accountability," Navas said.
A 1980 grand jury investigation in Miami-Dade into abuse and neglect in nursing homes and assisted-living facilities led Florida to pass laws protecting their residents.
