From the NYT: Arbitration Has Come to Senior Living. You Don’t Have to Sign Up.

harshedbuzz

This should be a gifted link>

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/24/health/assisted-living-arbitration.html?unlocked_article_code=9qsgvLnqqOOLIEWQhpVOqRokbW5-pff7Yk_BDSEtpy9hhqu9FKVMQudCUeUzmwV1xDAvraH0Cyy_66K_FBDzWFepGYV1zMf1Vivj3TB04tT0Elz2saNQ8yQc1_Xi5DInTQoRj9fQjJoLubxiLDk-1AlEXrSsFvlgCUdBCxIThw5WqLf3Dg7UckIJRdRtDLBHwOvol13UD4x7AKILAhwbSRDhaf--pzWkPhl1fyB5pjUx3KXdkpWksElrCvBWnBFzgiXz1d6d7FwwXK8jF9p4s0t8UmV0shTQtWkQGKL1QSXuJc6WQjVpXjDlWNIyjR5VSfH3z4TpXV54zYVktt1ZwbgCXdk&smid=share-url

CanyonGal

I first found the arbitration clause when mom had to go to rehab. I didn't spot it as first because I was an emotional wreak and we were happy to find a rehab after surgery. I wrote a letter with quotes within their own contract that said I didn't have to agree, and it would not reject her from getting in. She ended back in the hospital and honestly, I think their staff missed her infection.

Since then, I look carefully for it within facility contracts. Arbitration sounds like a deal -lets work this out without going to court - but you are actually signing away your legal right to EVER take the facility to court.

When Obama was president, arbitration in facilities was not allowed, but Trump allowed it back in. Perhaps we should petition Biden?

Arbitration Has Come to Senior Living. You Don’t Have to Sign Up. - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

FYI - The Department of Health and Human Services, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 42 CFR Part 483 [CMS-3342-F] allows “nursing homes” to enter into pre-dispute arbitration agreements with residents, but it also prohibits organizations from requiring residents to sign the arbitration agreement as a condition for admission. CMS-3342-F also adds a requirement that facilities give residents a 30-day period to rescind their agreement to arbitrate disputes. 

https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/medicare-and-medicaid-programs-revision-requirements-long-term-care-facilities-arbitration

CanyonGal

Thank you for sharing! This is a big deal and there should be a law making it illegal.

National Consumer Voice (theconsumervoice.org)

MN Chickadee

Arbitration clauses were at every MC place I toured. At the time I was very stressed and was worried they wouldn't take my mom if I didn't agree to the terms in the contract. It's a lot to expect of families to not only understand the legal jargon in the document but also stand up to it on an individual basis. Starting your relationship that way with a care facility who you are turning custody of your loved one over to is less than ideal. Some federal legislation would be welcomed. 

Here it is as a hyperlink of the gifted link for those who can't copy/paste: 

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/24/health/assisted-living-arbitration.html?unlocked_article_code=9qsgvLnqqOOLIEWQhpVOqRokbW5-pff7Yk_BDSEtpy9hhqu9FKVMQudCUeUzmwV1xDAvraH0Cyy_66K_FBDzWFepGYV1zMf1Vivj3TB04tT0Elz2saNQ8yQc1_Xi5DInTQoRj9fQjJoLubxiLDk-1AlEXrSsFvlgCUdBCxIThw5WqLf3Dg7UckIJRdRtDLBHwOvol13UD4x7AKILAhwbSRDhaf--pzWkPhl1fyB5pjUx3KXdkpWksElrCvBWnBFzgiXz1d6d7FwwXK8jF9p4s0t8UmV0shTQtWkQGKL1QSXuJc6WQjVpXjDlWNIyjR5VSfH3z4TpXV54zYVktt1ZwbgCXdk&smid=share-url