The average fine in recent years has been $33,453, but 531 nursing homes amassed combined federal fines above $100,000, records show. In 2016, Congress increased the fines to factor in several years of inflation that had not been accounted for previously. A July memo from the centers discouraged the directors of state agencies that survey nursing homes from issuing daily fines for violations that began before an inspection, favoring one-time fines instead. But the change means that some nursing homes could be sheltered from fines above the maximum per-instance fine of $20,965 even for egregious mistakes. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyAdvocates for nursing home residents say that relaxing penalties threatens to undo progress at deterring wrongdoing.

Source: New York Times December 24, 2017 21:45 UTC