There is a common shorthand for the general public’s perception about long-term care, frequently referred to as the "70-70-70" problem:
•70 percent of the people over age 65 will need some form of long-term care during their remaining lives.
•70 percent of the public does not believe they will ever need such care.
•70 percent of the public thinks that if they did need such care, it is already covered by their Medicare insurance. Medicare covers only acute short-term care needs, not long-term care.
Despite this demand, many health care facilities across the nation are financially strapped, leading to a size gap between what facilities have and what is needed to ensure adequate nurse staffing in long-term care facilities; ensuring a labor shortage does not negatively affect a facility’s standard of care is a complex and daily balancing act. This gap and how it affects a facility’s standard of care may be the crux of a family’s and/or resident’s lawsuit against a nursing home or assisted living facility. As a result, understanding both the public perception and how to strategize against it is one of the keys to successfully defending long-term care cases.
In order to glean the most up-to-date perspective on avoiding and defending long-term care claims and litigation, consider heading to Scottsdale, Arizona this September to attend DRI’s Nursing Home/ALF Seminar. Presentations from industry leaders will focus on, among other topics, MDS 3.0 and staffing measures, standard of care in long-term care cases, and the top 10 drivers of aging services claims. Registration is now open, click here for more information.
