Abuse and Neglect

I just want to be able to get the care that everyone else gets…I want to be treated with dignity.

-the subject of a lawsuit after being denied nursing home care as reported by Carolina Public Press.

This individual was sadly denied from two nursing homes: Sunnybrook Rehabilitation Center in Raleigh and Treyburn Rehabilitation Center in Durham on the grounds that the man suffered from a common disease– drug addiction. Of course, the nursing home industry is full of staff caregivers with substance abuse problems. Isn’t it ironic?

The North Carolina man they denied expressed his struggle, stating,

I was sick and needed help after being in the hospital, but the nursing homes said no.

WWJD?

Fortunately, a case was filed by Disability Rights NC with the Legal Action Center against this flagrant obstruction of rights.

Quickly, the team won the case as the patient was not legally allowed to be denied the care of a nursing home under the Americans with Disabilities Act—something one would expect nursing home facilities to be aware of. However, the delays in treatment and lack of access to the care he needed, he suffered a coma.

This is all because the nursing homes chose to discriminate against the patients they accept and work to deny those who may need care the most.

Perhaps they agree with the reckless indifference and inhumane treatment of Americans struggling with drug addiction—that they should be left to the streets and prisons, or even executed.

Hopefully, the nursing home learned a lesson for its callousness and harm. They adopted an anti-discrimination policy; paid a $55,000 fine; and training staff on regulatory standards; and creating a system to monitor the admission denials including those with substance abuse disorders.

This case was the first of its kind, and nursing homes across the country have been able to get away with denying Americans who receive treatment for addiction their right to medical care. Hopefully, this landmark case will set a new precedent: that no one deserves to be robbed of the chance to receive the medical treatment they need.