Latest News Archives - Center for Elder Law & Justice

Erin Riker, Esq. Coordinator, CELJ Legal Advice Helpline This blog entry contains information about changes in laws, emergency declarations, and other government actions that affect your life in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. This is a rapidly developing situation, so this article will be updated regularly as conditions change. This entry is current as…

submitted by Bria Lewis, Esq. The 2020 Presidential Election is fast approaching and many long-term care residents are at risk for not being able to cast a vote. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused nursing homes and adult care facilities to have strict visitation policies. Therefore, family members, Ombudsman representatives, and other visitors that would assist…

submitted by Lindsay Heckler, Esq. On September 17, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new nursing home visitation guidelines that replace and supersede all previous rules pertaining to nursing home visitation. The CMS guidance was issued shortly after the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) issued its own update to…

submitted by Bria Lewis, Esq. and Liam McMahon On September 15, 2020, the NYS Department of Health released updated guidelines for Skilled Nursing Facility Visitation. The first update to visitation guidelines is facilities must have no new confirmed staff or resident COVID-19 reported cases for 14 days. (The prior threshold for visitation was 28 days.)…

submitted by Caroline McDonough, Esq. The recent return to school for many as well as the continued return to the workplace is bringing about questions relating to the availability of coronavirus testing. While testing continues to increase across New York State, health insurance coverage for tests only remains available for medical purposes. Federal guidance requires…

Attorney Lindsay Heckler is providing testimony today before the Joint Legislative Committees on Aging, Health, and Investigations and Government Operations on New York Residential Health Care Facilities and Covid-19. The growing crisis of substandard care in nursing homes and other residential settings is nothing new. The pandemic has exacerbated these issues and brought long overdue…

A.4416C (Gottfried) / S.3460A (Rivera) provides important consumer protections to residents and their families by deterring the worst abuses in Adult Care Facilities. The Center for Elder Law & Justice is urging our state legislators to support A.4416C / S.3460A in an effort to improve Adult Care Facilities, benefiting the lives of New Yorkers residing…

We welcome the July 10th announcement and corresponding guidance issued by the NYS Department of Health (“DOH”) to reopen visitation to nursing homes and adult care facilities. We are pleased to see that “visitors” is not limited, and includes family members, loved ones, long-term care ombudsmen, and resident advocacy organizations. Visitors play an essential component…

The Department of Health (DOH) announced on July 10 that that outside visitation and limited indoor visitation and activities can resume in nursing homes and adult care facilities so long as the facility meets specific benchmarks. We discuss what those benchmarks are and the limitations on visitation below. We encourage residents and families who have…