We warehouse our elderly, and profit from it

Can the owner of Rudy’s Agape House re-apply for another license? The reality is that few people really understand the situation that exists in assisted living facilities. The expense is $3,000-$4,000 a month for a small room with a bath and perhaps a bedroom, leaving little to meet even the basic needs of residents. The food is marginal, catering to dietary restrictions and the whims of corporate funding. Since most ALFs are now corporate owned, profit is the bottom line and even basic supplies are governed by cost.

Help is hard to keep. It is a demanding job and one that pays less than McDonalds. Many people who work in these facilities lack any serious training and most do not have a calling for the work. I speak from experience. After filing two detailed and serious complaints with Medicare a few years ago on a facility here in town, I asked Medicare what it took to close a facility down. The answer was shocking in the extreme: no matter how serious the issues, it is nearly impossible. I was told that in her experience, it took more than 10 years to close down one of the worst she’d ever seen. When Medicare follows up on a complaint, the facility has 30 days to fix the issues. Once they are addressed, often things go back to the same status quo. Residents are intimidated and reluctant to report abuse because of fears of retaliation. Few of these facilities are licensed to even provide actual medical care.

Even so as a resident’s health fails, they are often returned over and over again from hospitalizations when they need nursing care. It is frustrating at the very least, and heartbreaking. The fact is, as a nation, we warehouse our elderly and make money doing it. How sad.

This story was originally published March 31, 2017 at 2:53 PM with the headline "We warehouse our elderly, and profit from it."