In the News
ASSISTED CARE
MANY IN NURSING HOMES GIVEN ‘CHEMICAL STRAITJACKET’ DRUGS
Eight in 10 nursing home residents on Medicare were prescribed psychiatric drugs during a recent nine-year period, a government report found. That’s roughly a million residents per year.
The report, released in November by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, suggests that yearslong efforts are failing to curtail overuse of psychiatric drugs in America’s nursing homes.
The drugs, known as psychotropics, have long been criticized by nursing home resident advocates and lawmakers as “chemical straitjackets” used to sedate unruly patients, particularly those with dementia. They include antianxiety agents, antidepressants, antipsychotics and other drugs that affect brain activity and behavior.
From 2011 to 2019, about 80 percent of long-stay Medicare residents nationwide—those in a nursing home for 101 consecutive days or longer—were prescribed some type of psychotropic drug, according to the report.
“We are deeply concerned for the residents that continue to face the inappropriate and dangerous use of these drugs,” said Kelly Bagby, vice president of litigation at AARP Foundation, which has sued nursing homes for incorrectly administering psychotropic drugs.
The use of psychotropic drugs in older adults comes with serious risks. Antipsychotics can increase mortality risk in patients treated for dementia-related psychosis. Some anticonvulsant medications can cause life-threatening reactions, including liver failure and increased risk of suicide. And antidepressants can make older adults more vulnerable to headaches, gastrointestinal issues, cognitive impairment and falls.
For a thorough look at the state of nursing homes in the U.S. three years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, read “For Nursing Homes, Pandemic Challenges Haven't Ended” in this issue.
STATE CARE FACILITIES COULD FACE LAWSUITS
THE U.S. SUPREME Court heard arguments in November in a case that may decide whether millions of long-term care residents have the right to sue state-run nursing facilities in certain circumstances.
The suit was brought by the family of an Indiana nursing home resident. It accuses his facility of violating his rights by overmedicating him, unlawfully moving him to different facilities and not appropriately treating him for dementia.
The state-run Health and Hospital Corp., which owns the facility, sought to dismiss the case, arguing that residents who depend on federal programs such as Medicaid can’t sue the state over rights violations.
The Supreme Court is expected to rule by the end of June.
RELATIVITY
DOES A RIDE on a packed subway feel longer than on a less-crowded train? Absolutely, say researchers at Cornell University, who created virtual reality programs simulating New York subway trains that were packed or less full. They documented that crowding created stress that caused subjects to estimate a ride lasted much longer.
Homeless Crisis Grows Among Older Americans
Americans 55-plus represent a rising part of the national homelessness crisis, and forecasts suggest a dramatic increase in the number of older individuals who will be unable to secure housing over the coming decade, according to an aarp.org news report.
America’s estimated homeless count stood at 580,466 as of 2020, and 18 percent—roughly the population of Boulder, Colorado—were 55 and older, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. “There’s been a trend over the last several years where we’re seeing many more older adults” who are homeless, says Richard Cho, HUD’s senior adviser for housing and services.
From 2009 to 2017, the number of people age 62 or older who were homeless nearly doubled, Cho says. Soaring housing costs and the worst inflation in America in 40 years have exacerbated the situation, advocates say. The shortage of affordable housing has hit older Americans especially hard, says Rodney Harrell, vice president of family, home and community for AARP.
“We don’t have enough housing options, particularly for folks with lower incomes,” Harrell says.
For the full report on homelessness among older Americans, and profiles of people living unsheltered, go to
aarp.org/homelessafter50 .
Wait Times Soar for Social Security Hearings
Here are the AVERAGE WAIT TIMES IN MONTHS for a disability claim hearing at 10 of the offices with the worst response times.
GETTING A HEARING from Social Security on a disability claim can take more than 1.5 years at some of the agency’s least responsive offices, an analysis by AARP’s government affairs staff of September Social Security Administration data shows. Getting a resolution on other issues also was taking longer than ever. As many as 10,000 people die each year waiting to hear from the agency on disability claims, according to the Government Accountability Office.