NURSING HOME REFORM: AARP Launches ‘Light Rail Lobbying’
The American Association of Retired Persons at a press conference Wednesday launched a "light rail lobbying" ad campaign aimed at reforming California's nursing homes. "We are trying to get the attention of 121 people with these ads," said Zoe Ann Murray, chair of the AARP's State Legislative Committee. "We hope the 120 senators and assembly members who see them will seriously support good nursing home legislation. We hope Governor Gray Davis will sign the final bill," she said. Assembly Majority Leader Kevin Shelley (D-San Francisco), who is sponsoring nursing home reform legislation, said, "Nursing home reform is critical to ensure that seniors get what they deserve. Nursing home reform is about increasing three things, it's about increasing staff ratios, penalties for nursing homes in violation of standards and reimbursement to provide better direct services to seniors." The AARP's lobbying effort comes in response to a federal General Accounting Office report released last summer that found 30% of the state's nursing home facilities were causing patients serious harm (AARP release, 2/3). Click here for previous coverage of nursing home care in California.
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