Legislative Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show-Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010
The entire record of the previous legislative session (Thursday, January 14) can be found here.
Key legislation that was passed, most of it previously discussed here, included:
HB 202 (Rep. B. Short)-Designed to protect policyholders when a health or life insurance company is liquidated. Pretty sure that this bill was a Matt Denn proposal from his time as IC. Passed by both houses, will go to Governor.
HB 30 (Jaques)-Increases assessments on developers to reflect current school construction costs. Was sponsored primarily by the Middletown-area legislators to try to get a grip on exploding development. Passed House and goes to Senate. Vigorously opposed by homebuilders’ lobby. 13 Rethugs voted no. Here’s the roll call.
HB 294 (Bennett)-Passed the House w/o a dissenting vote, but will bear watching in the Senate. The bill basically eliminates some elective row office jobs in Kent County and transfers the functions to the Kent County Department of Finance. Good government bill, eliminates some political hackery in county government. So why, El Somnambulo, does this bill bear watching in the Senate?
Glad’ja asked. Because Her Royal High Potentate Nancy Cook has decreed this bill as anathema to building a career for up-and-coming political talent, and she still throws her not insubstantial avoirdupois around in the Senate. It will be interesting to see what committee is assigned this bill. As to her argument about political talent, I have two words for her: Mike and Kozakowski. I rest my case.
The Session Report for January 14 also lists some newly-introduced bills. I will not generally discuss them here as I usually leave that for my committee meeting previews and wrapups.
Today’s Preview:
Not many bills on the agenda, but a few interesting ones, including a seemingly-innocuous bill that, in fact, is a window into the Delaware Way:
Only bill on the agenda is nevertheless an intriguing one:
SB 81 (Sokola)-Would require chain restaurants to provide labels with complete and accurate nutritional information. There would also be an educational outreach by the Division of Public Health on obesity.
While I admire the intent of this bill, (a) the cynic in me believes that people who go to fast food places already know that the food is laden with all kinds of bad things, and they don’t care; and (b) if you’re gonna do this, why limit it to fast food places? I love Italian food, but I’ve always got a cardiologist on speed-dial when I go to an Italian restaurant. Should make for an interesting floor debate.
Now, kids, sidle up closer to your computer screen as I e-whisper you some nasty facts about the Delaware Way. But, first, I’ve got an audience participation assignment for you. Read this bill, which is on today’s House Agenda:
HB 3 (Hudson)-Would add a representative from the Delaware Health Care Facilities Association to the Hospital Infection Advisory Board.
First, here is the section of the Code delineating the current members of this Board:
(c)(1) The Secretary of the Department shall appoint an Advisory Committee, which shall include 1 infection control professional who has responsibility for infection control programs from each hospital or health care system in Delaware, 4 infection disease physicians with expertise in infection control, and 1 representative from the State Division of Public Health and the Public Health Hospital Infections Specialist responsible for collating and reporting data. The Secretary shall also appoint 7 other members of the Committee including representatives from direct care nursing staff, academic researchers, consumer organizations, health insurers, health maintenance organizations, organized labor and purchasers of health insurance, such as employers. The Advisory Committee shall have the authority to engage personnel with appropriate training and/or certification in infection prevention and control for the purposes of collecting data.
To that list of 7, this bill would add a lobbyist. The Delaware Health Care Facilities Association primarily lobbies for the nursing home industry. Its Executive Director, Yrene Waldron, led the fight on behalf of the nursing home industry to thwart nursing home reform in Delaware. With Vince Meconi as Secretary of DHSS, she largely succeeded. Nursing homes are notorious for doing a poor job with infections. When they get bad enough, the patients are sent to the Emergency Room where the blame game between hospitals and nursing homes as to who was responsible, ensues. And, DHCFA’s director has led the fight to keep accurate nursing home infection information from the public.
While it may indeed make sense to have a front-line nursing home provider on this board, the public is in no way served by having a hired lobbyist on this board, especially one who has proven hostile to even the most minimal of reform efforts.
We hear talk all the time about ‘special interest’ legislation. Generally, by Rethugs who call anything helping the poor or working families as benefiting the special interests. However, HB 3 is true special interest legislation. If they are serious about changing the Delaware Way, the House of Representatives will shoot this worthless, and possibly damaging, piece of legislation down today.
Back tomorrow, with bold opinions and boldface in tow.
Excellent wrap up ‘Bulo. Gosh it is so great to have your expertise and sharp wit at our daily disposal here.
The roll call on HB 30 is telling…telling me those frickin’ Republicans (albeit Oberle voted yay) would’t know a budget saving device if it smacked them in the arse.
And Hudson’s lobby lovin’ bill might get some more chatter since you have pointed out so much background: “While it may indeed make sense to have a front-line nursing home provider on this board, the public is in no way served by having a hired lobbyist on this board, especially one who has proven hostile to even the most minimal of reform efforts”.
I will be sure to contact my Assembly people about it. My mother suffered in a retirement home from ongoing infections that were only treated once they were emergencies and, frankly, just as you describe, her health care at her facility was fraught with incompetence…and it was arguably one of the best in the state (up in Chateau Country, nuff said).
Bravo. I look forward to more of your diligent reporting.
if you’re gonna do this, why limit it to fast food places?
It is actually a non-trivial cost to send your food out to the lab for a certified analysis and calorie count. Chain restaurants can do this because they serve the same meals everywhere. But for a small restaurant, they aren’t going to send each “Special Of The Day” out to the lab before they serve it.
In most chain restaurants the nutritional info is usually available if you ask for it, or on their web site. I think it is actually on the back of McDonald’s placemats. The chains aren’t exactly hiding the info, but it would be better to have it labeled more prominently, so Sokola’s bill is a good thing.
If they want a representative from nursing homes, get a nurse.
Does Hudson have another crony who needs employment? The problem is non compliance. It is the responsibilty of the States Ombudsman and the Long Term Care folk who only have a couple of investigators to investigate abuse and neglect for all these nursing homes.Problem is they are woefully understaffed. Not only responsible for nursing home oversight, they also investigate abuse/neglect in community group homes! In 1992 the Ombudsman office had 3 people and had never investigated group home abuse even though it was their responsiblity. We parents had to do our own investigation of the abuse in group homes.
A few years ago, Sen. Marshall’s father died in a nursing home and he became a “advocate to change/reform nursing homes”. Marshall started out with the appropriate questions, but under attack by the Lobbyists for Nursing Homes caved in and backed down on the number of nursing staff required for the population.
I have a patient who was in one of the most expensive nursing homes in northern Del. Prior to placement I visited at least 10, talked with admin and staff. I then went online to look up the number of abuse and neglect allegations against them. EVERY single one had ongoing abuse/neglect allegations against them. Majority of nursing homes are for profit. They have direct care staff ratios of 2 staff to 15 patients. No way they can provide the real care each patient requires.
What we need is more investigators at the Ombudsman office who are required by law to do the investigation. The problem with Ombudsman Program is once they do the investigation, there is no requirement to deliver a report of that investigation to anyone. These investigations get buried in the State, rarely making it to the AG’s office for proscecution.
What we have is the Nursing Home Lobby in Delaware lobbying against any real reform, delivering campaign contributions to legislators to make sure there are no new rules for compliance with state and federal law. Fix the system already in place! We dont need another crony who does nothing but collect a check.
No offense, just kiddin’ but you’re incorrect on the facts. The Ombudsman’s office, despite its name, does not have any investigative authority. Its role is more that of a mediator/patients’ advocate, and often intervenes in disputes between patients and caregivers.
It is the Division of Long-Term Care Residents’ Protection that is responsible for investigations. It is also responsible for doing surveys and meting out sanctions, where appropriate.
Marshall didn’t cave. In fact, Delaware has some of the strongest nursing home laws in the country. The problem is that, under Vince Meconi and his henchperson Carol Ellis, the Division resolutely and openly REFUSED to enforce one of the most important elements of Marshall’s reform package: the minimum staffing BY SHIFT. This enabled the nursing homes to understaff on both the second and third shifts in direct violation of the law. Marshall, in fact, did a follow-up review around 2002, I think. If you can get your hands on the report, you will read that Marshall repeatedly pushed Ellis to enforce the law, and Ellis refused. Marshall then took it upstairs to Minner’s office where Meconi and Minner basically told him to go bleep himself. I know, ’cause I was there.
My mom’s environment went from having had two doctors on staff to one with weekends off. There were capable nurses but since she lived in the independent assisted living area, when she became ill on a weekend, there wasn’t anyone around who could summon someone with the authority to do anything for her until she was so sick that the ambulance was called and she was shuffled off to Chrisiana, St. Francis or Wilmington, depending on where there was some available space for her.
The lack of attention eventually weakened her, not to mention the fact that improper and harmful medication was scripted for her more than once. Unfortunately, my older siblings had been given her legal authority and they voted not to honor her wishes to make a formal complaint, figuring that ‘she had to live with these people’.
http://resolutedetermination.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/no-tax-increase-pledge-already-tossed-overboard-in-states-house-of-representatives/#comment-3158
Charlie Copeland printed out the roll call for HB 30 completely missing the point that the state tax payers are going broke because they are forced to pay for schools now. I wrote a long comment over there that you will enjoy, Bulo. Dick Cathcart wrote the law to exclude school construction and student enrollment from consideration and from adequate facility law. Now he regrets it. A DEM is fixing it.
Just who is Mike Kozakowski?
Just my point. He’s the New Castle County Recorder of Deeds, an elective position. Actually, it’s Kozikowski. Best known for his muscle shirts and George Hamilton tan. Not known for his intellect or political potential.
Mike worked quietly through this past year to put together the foreclosure modification program.
The Recorder of Deeds offices (and the other Row offices) will cease to exist in a few short years…