Home health care workers, who have become an essential part of the treatment network for the elderly and homebound, are escaping background checks in at least 10 states in what federal investigators warn is potential security hole.
The Health and Human Services inspector general reports there is no federal requirement for criminal background checks for home health workers, but that 40 states do offer some form of vetting, But convicts can become home health care providers in Alabama, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming, investigators found.
“Beneficiaries receiving care from HHAs (home health agencies) are especially at risk of mistreatment because employees are providing services, usually unsupervised, in beneficiaries’ homes. However, there are no Federal laws or regulations that require HHAs to conduct background checks prior to hiring individuals or to periodically conduct background checks after an individual has been hired,” the watchdog report reads.
According to the Inspector General’s report, HHAs provided services to approximately 3.5 million Medicare beneficiaries, averaging 34 visits per beneficiary in 2012. Medicare paid nearly $18.5 billion for HHA services that year.
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It’s the Obongo HHS department. Is anyone surprised?
A vast number of liberals have criminal records. Its a badge of honor.
They would have a very small pool of liberals to choose from if criminals were excluded.
That’s not entirely true, I work in the medical industry and you cannot even take the state tests for a basic CNA training if you have any sort of violent criminal background. They will overlook misdemeanor crimes. I know from experience. (wink wink nudge nudge.)
Criminal backgrounds. Not surprising. The chumps that colluded with The Obama on raising health insurance premiums in my opinion already are convicted. Bunch of dicks.