COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) - Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced Friday his Medicaid Fraud Control Unit recently experienced an increase in complaints related to alleged neglect and abuse at Ohio nursing homes.
So far in 2013, DeWine's office opened 131 abuse and neglect cases, compared with 74 cases during the same time frame last year. Of the cases opened, 63 were opened after DeWine's announcement in June that authorities from his office were aggressively looking into nursing homes that allegedly provided inadequate care.
"I believe that the majority of Ohio's nursing facilities are providing excellent care, but not all of them," DeWine said. "We are going after the facilities that cause harm to their residents, and we will use in-room hidden cameras if necessary."
DeWine joined officials from the Ohio Department of Health and Ohio Department of Aging on June 6 to announce plans to revoke the license of the Zanesville-based Autumn Healthcare. DeWine's MFCU alleged that staff members did not provide proper nutritional, medical and personal care to at least one patient. The proceedings to revoke the license are ongoing.
Ohio AG announces rise in complaints about nursing home abuse, neglect
