Why do they need Blanket Immunity?
Republicans in Congress are pushing to give nursing homes blanket immunity for abuse and neglect. However, the industry does not need the protection of blanket immunity. The Ensign Group experienced another quarter of “record-breaking results,” executives recently reported. The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis is investigating five for-profit nursing home operators including Ensign. Ensign facilities have reported more than a thousand COVID-19 cases. The company has a total of 226 facilities. Nineteen of those providers have more than 20 coronavirus cases each, while 46 facilities have fewer than 20, and 106 of its facilities have no confirmed cases.
The committee requested information about ownership and organizational structure information as part of an inquiry into their pandemic response. In response, the executives returned about $110 million in federal coronavirus relief funding.
“These funds were meant to cover lost revenue and increased expenses tied to the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added. “We determined that it was not in the best interest of our organization to accept funds from rounds one, two or three of the CARES Act at this time.”
For the second-quarter in a row, Ensign achieved its highest earnings per share in history. Earnings per share of 78 cents — an 100% increase over the prior year quarter. The company also reported record earnings for the first quarter, as well as for the third and fourth quarters of 2019.
I’m just a simple country lawyer from Spartanburg, South Carolina but answer me this. Why do nursing homes need legal blanket immunity if they have record earnings?