Missouri

• 5 years. (Mo. Ann. Stat. §516.120) general negligence.
• Medical malpractice – 2 years with Discovery Rule. Infant under eighteen years of age has until twentieth birthday to bring action. Cases involving a foreign object must be brought within 2 years of discovery. No claim may be brought more than 10 years from date of occurrence. (Mo. Ann. Stat. §516.105)
• 3 year wrongful death
• In nursing home wrongful death cases, representative of the estate must file notice with the Attorney General's office in order to recover attorney fees
  

• Medical malpractice – Noneconomic damages are limited to $350,000 irrespective of the number of defendants. (Mo. Ann. Stat. §538.210)

• 3 years. (Mo. Ann. Stat. §537.100)

• Medical malpractice – Noneconomic damages are limited to $350,000 irrespective of the number of defendants. (Mo. Ann. Stat. §538.210)

• Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
• Nursing Homes
• Adult Protective Services
• Ombudsman Program

• Protective Services for Adults: Elder Abuse – (Mo. Ann. Stat. §§660.250 – 295).

• How Much Freedom Should Assisted Living Facilities Give The Mentally Disabled?

A mentally and physically disabled woman walked out of an Maple Crest Manor, an assisted living facility in St. Louis, MO,  and unknown to the facility boarded a bus to Chicago, IL.  The woman left the assisted living facility for what the staff suspected would be 'a long walk'.  After several hours passed without sight of the woman, the facility contacted the woman's legal guardian who then alerted police.

Chicago police called local Missouri authorities after finding the woman's name on the national database for missing and endangered people.  The woman was brought by authorities safely back to the facility in St. Louis.  No charges were filed against the assisted living facility or the legal guardian.  

• Rape Of Cerebral Palsy Patient Reported In St. Louis Nursing Home

A janitor at the Normandy Nursing Center, a St. Louis, Missouri nursing home, was arrested and charged with raping a resident at the facility.  The victim is a 36-year-old woman suffering from Cerebal Palsy and seizure disorder.  The alleged incident took place on December 21st when the janitor attacked the woman in a stairwell and raped her.  The alleged perpetrator is being held in the St. Louis County Jail on $200,000 cash only bond.  According to the administrator at Normandy Nursing Center, the alleged perpetrator has worked at the facility for a year and a half and passed a background check. Read more about this nursing home rape here.

• When The Going Gets Tough, Some Nursing Homes Turn To Medicare & Medicaid Fraud

When it comes to boosting their bottom line, some nursing homes will stop at nothing-- including stealing from taxpayers.  Because many nursing home patients are elderly or too frail to verify all the charges a nursing home submits to Medicare on their behalf, it is relatively easy for nursing homes to add extra charges for medical care and therapy without raising any eyebrows.

As taxpayers, we all should applaud situations when regulatory agencies are able to uncover fraud relating to Medicare and Medicaid.  In this sense, I was happy to hear about the an investigation conducted by federal authorities and the Missouri Attorney General that resulted in large nursing home operator pleading guilty to fraud charges and paying substantial criminal penalties.

•  It's Cold Out. Do You Know Where Your Nursing Home Resident Is? 

Another completely preventable nursing home death recently made the headlines as reported inSTLtoday.  Employees at the Northgate Park Nursing Home left 95-year-old Fannie Mae Rooks in her wheelchair in an outdoor smoking area at the facility last week. Rooks reportedly died from exposure to the elements as she sat unattended in the cold weather.  Local police investigators are trying to determine how Ms. Rooks made her way into the smoking area and how nursing home employees failed to keep track of her whereabouts.  

• Nursing Home Bookkeeper Admits To Stealing Money From Facility

Sadly, at a time when many are feeling severe financial strain, some nursing home operators and employees are turning to another source of potential income-- stealing state and federal funds intended for nursing home patients.

The most recent case of stealing or Medicare fraud-- which is essentially what most of these cases come down to because that is where most funds derive-- comes from Missouri.  Connie Jean Beckerman, the former bookkeeper at Perryville Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, pleaded guilty to: forgery, stealing by deceit, and abuse of a person receiving health care-- all felonies.