|
|
| Corrections officials ignored inspections at center |
| By St. Paul Pioneer Press |
| Published: 06/07/2004 |
|
State prison officials continued to send convicted sex offenders to stay at a Minneapolis, Minn., nursing home even after state health inspectors faulted the facility for not reporting and investigating a resident's claim that she had been raped by a nursing assistant. Although the violation was detailed in a Medicare inspection report -- and is available online -- it appears officials with the Minnesota Department of Corrections weren't aware of it because they never read any of the inspections that the Minnesota Department of Health performed at Concordia Care Center before deciding to house sex offenders there. The inspection reports reveal that Concordia has had a troublesome history: Its most recent inspection last June found it had twice the national average of deficiencies, which included health care and safety issues. The convicted sex offenders were being placed in a nursing home where the amount of time that staff supervised the residents ranked below state and national averages. In a lawsuit filed this week by Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch, the state alleges that inmates placed in the nursing home sexually and physically assaulted other residents, even though they were in a "secure unit" of the 94-bed facility. Assistant Corrections Commissioner Chris Bray said May 28 that she saw no reason why her agency needed to read Concordia's inspection reports before deciding to house sex offenders there. The majority of the residents at the facility are developmentally disabled, and most receive some sort of state aid. In the 12 months ended Sept. 30, the state reimbursed Concordia more than $3.7 million, and the average per-person daily charge paid by the state at Concordia is $121, said Bob Held, director of nursing facility policy and rates at the Department of Human Services. Hatch's office is trying to determine why corrections officials chose Concordia Care Center as a place to house some of the state's convicted sex offenders. A quick -- and relatively simple -- check of state and federal records online for the North Carolina-based company that owns Concordia shows the facility and its owners have a record spotted with safety violations. |
MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
|
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think