Trapped in Nursing Homes, People with Disabilities File Class Action Lawsuit Charging Violation of Constitutional Rights

Four people with disabilities filed a class action lawsuit in federal court against the New York State Department of Health (DOH), DOH Commissioner Howard Zucker, and Visiting Nurse Association Health Care, Inc. to challenge the illegal administration of a program that was designed, but failed, to facilitate the plaintiffs’ transition from nursing homes to their own homes.  MFY Legal Services, Inc. and Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, who are representing the plaintiffs, found that due to the poor and unconstitutional administration of the Nursing Home Transition and Diversion Medicaid Waiver Program, thousands of senior citizens and individuals with disabilities remain trapped in nursing home facilities instead of receiving the care that they need in their own homes.    

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