If a young boy is overwhelmed with rage and says something to another which is hurtful, it is likely that they could be forgiven. After all, American society has deemed those younger than eighteen as too-young to handle the responsibilities of an adult. “A boy’s brain doesn't reach full development until 25” is a thing I have heard said by others quite often throughout my own life. Suffice it to say that there are many things that can be forgiven, for any number of reasons. 

And there are sins which I cannot fathom forgiving. 

Recently I was made aware of an investigation by Signal Ohio Journalist Jake Zuckerman, who found that at least eight Ohio nursing homes and care facilities had “improperly discharged” patients in their care. Such as, a woman suffering from alcohol-related dementia was suddenly dropped off at a homeless shelter where there was already a wait-list of over 100 people. The care facility had not called the county’s psychiatric board. The woman was left in front of the shelter using her walker, while incontinent, diabetic – with a broken leg – holding a large bag of medications. The homeless shelter refused her entry during what was reported as “summer heat."

Zuckerman wrote: 

"The incident was what industry experts described as a rare but increasingly common instance of care facilities in Ohio transferring its patients – who are often older, poorer, and medically fragile – to a homeless shelter.” In his investigation he also found that even when found out and faulted by Federal investigators, these discharges from nursing homes and likewise facilities were still, “ultimately carried out.”

Similarly, there was a man who had lived at a care facility for twenty-two years, who was a diabetic, had cataracts and glaucoma, unable to manage his own blood sugar levels and was suspected of being autistic who was removed immediately from the facility – told that he was being transferred to a new place after his insurance failed to pay on time. He too was dropped off at a homeless shelter. 

Without needles for, or the understanding of how, to care for his diabetes. Not only was he unable to see with his glaucoma, but after twenty-two years of living in that care facility, he had no driver’s license, no birth certificate, no proof of residence. 

“I can’t believe they would do someone dirty like that.” His roommate told inspectors. Still, inspected or not, those in need and others are still unceremoniously dropped at the door to overburdened homeless shelters. 

The list of patients in the investigation who were done wrong by Ohio went on and continues to go on. The real question is…is it illegal? 

The U.S. House Bill 412 (2002) was cosponsored by Senator Jon Husted, which combines nursing homes and all residential care facilities into the same legal umbrella, which both shortens the window of filing a lawsuit against any facility down to one year, as well as barring all state-inspection findings from being introduced in court. 

That is… absolutely wild. 

To get this straight: a “care” facility home can drop a blind, autistic, diabetic human who has been dependent on their care for 22 years with no proof of birth, residence, or even a name at a homeless shelter. And, even if state auditors find this out and the autistic adult figures he should sue, he cannot, because if his case details were discovered by state auditors, it’s as if what happened to him didn't happen. Or those actions by the care facility were instead made legal because they cannot be punished for it. 

The Republican Senator who co-sponsored the bill has accepted more than one million dollars from executives and care facilities after passage of the bill. 

The Department of Health and Human Services posted a report in 2021 titled “Facility-Initiated Discharges in Nursing Homes Require Further Attention." In the report’s opening statement, it talks about the uptick in these cases (even back five years ago, let alone what is happening in Ohio and other states right now):  

"...for example, the police found one resident on the streets after a nursing home discharged the resident to an unlicensed boarding house without notifying the resident’s family.” 

This isn’t an article to target people who push for “grandma to enter a retirement home,” when she is still perfectly capable of taking care of herself. It is, rather, to bring more light to the horrifying trend in (noteworthy for the uptick in cases) states like Ohio and Utah for unceremoniously dropping mentally and medically unwell humans on the doorstep of homeless shelters and unlicensed boarding houses. It is to shame people like Senator Jon Husted and those who voted for him: he, who would make it that much harder for people to sue “care" facilities and then get a fat paycheck from those facilities. 

How deranged is it for a nursing home to say, "The patient’s insurance stopped; we don't know why. We don't have money to take care of them for the required thirty days while they try to figure out what happened with their insurance. Lie to the patient, drop them off at a homeless shelter. Then let us give one million dollars to Senator Husted, thanking him for making it ever harder for anyone to sue us. Thank God. Bless the U.S.A.”?

Maybe I am too emotionally invested in this? My grandmother had Alzheimer's, and after my father tried caring for her for years while also working eight or more hours a day as a truck driver for U.P.S., he finally relented and placed her in a nursing home. 

All I can feel is horror, knowing that other families are out there who discover that their grandmother was sent to the street without notification – and the law says that any state findings are not permissible in court. That instead of another day of warmth due to stopped funds, excess money goes into a senator’s pockets. 

There are some sins which I cannot fathom forgiving, not in any world.

Austin Petak is an aspiring novelist and freelance journalist who loves seeking stories and the quiet passions of the soul. If you are interested in reaching out to him to cover a story, you may find him at austinpetak@gmail.com.

Opinions expressed by columnists in The Daily Record are not necessarily those of its management or staff, and do not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. Any errors or omissions should be called to our attention so that they may be corrected. Contact us at news@omahadailyrecord.com.