Coronavirus Nursing Home Neglect in Florida

Generally speaking, nursing homes can be held legally responsible (or liable) for any of the following:

• Negligent hiring or understaffing
• Inadequate training
• Medication or dosage errors
• Physical, emotional, or financial abuse
• Other forms of neglect

Importantly, they can also be held liable if they fail to appropriately respond to an emergency situation such as a pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offered guidelines for nursing homes to protect residents and staff from serious illness and complications due to COVID-19. These include:

• Restricting volunteers, visitors, and non-essential healthcare personnel
• Daily screenings of residents for COVID-19 symptoms
• Isolating residents who have symptoms
• Enforcing social distancing (6’ apart)
• Instructing residents to wear a face mask around others
• Designating a space to care for those suspected or known to have COVID-19
• Monitoring ill residents at least three times a day to identify those who may need a higher level of care (such as hospitalization/intubation)

If a long-term care facility did not follow CDC guidelines, or if they were negligent in a broader sense, patients and workers who were harmed as a result may be able to file a lawsuit to recover compensation for damages such as lost wages, medical bills, and funeral expenses (in the event of a loved one’s death).

If a nursing home failed to take any of the above measures, and that failure led to you or a loved one becoming sick, contact one of our Florida offices. Over the past 30 years, our attorneys have won more than $20 billion in settlements and jury verdicts. As America’s largest personal injury law firm, we have the resources and staff to take on big companies and win.

Best of all, consultations are free, and it costs nothing upfront to hire us. Find out if you have a case by filling out a brief case evaluation form.