Assisted Living Report
There are now over 30,000 assisted living facilities nationwide, which house nearly one million people. Those facilities, which offer a transitional phase between living at home and living in a nursing home, are regulated by state governments, with no federal mandates.
In 2001 the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing to gain a better understanding of the emerging assisted living industry. A workgroup of stakeholders formed to produce a 380 page document that covers most aspects of care in assisted living facilities.
The document was produced by the Assisted Living Workgroup whose membership included nearly 50 organizations representing industry representatives, consumer advocates, long term care professionals, as well as regulators and accrediting bodies.
Committee Chairman Senator Larry Craig said, "I feel much more needs to be done. This report does not provide a uniform set of model rules and regulations for health care services in assisted living. However, it demonstrates the diversity of opinion on what needs to be done to make the industry safer."
"Rather than Congress jumping in with a mandate, this time we asked those with opposing viewpoints to examine these issues and see what agreements they could reach. This group took on a tough job, meeting for eighteen months to hammer out an extensive report. When I asked our witnesses what was left out, they all agreed that it covers nearly every base."
The Workgroup developed 110 recommendations which were agreed to, and 21 additional recommendations they did not agree to, all of which are included in the report. Those recommendations include everything from pricing to staffing levels to medication management.
"Hopefully this report will cause the various states to see what recommendations they may want to implement to improve the health and safety of the facilities in their communities. When our committee revues this issue again, it will look at the improvements that have taken place because of this report," Craig concluded.