Maryland Nursing Home Ratings

Over 50% more Maryland nursing homes received one star under Medicare’s new rating system than those who receive five stars, the highest ranking possible.

The new nursing home rating system is designed to provide information about the overall quality of care provided at facilities throughout the United States, as well as individual rankings for staffing, quality and health inspections.

The ratings are based on complaint investigations and inspection records from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which inspect and evaluate nursing homes nationwide that receive government benefits. The rankings include information about nursing home staffing levels, nursing home bedsores and other preventable injuries.

Out of the 230 Maryland nursing homes, 47 (20%) were given 1 Star and only 30 (13%) received 5 Stars.

When compared to the nursing home rankings from all states, the quality of care at Maryland nursing homes fell in line with the national averages. Approximately 23% of all nursing homes in the United States received 1 Star, with Louisiana nursing homes accounting for the highest percentage of one-star facilities (39%).

Delaware nursing homes were found to have the highest percentage of top performing facilities, with 29% of their 45 homes receiving 5 Stars.

The complete list of the nursing home rankins are available through the Medicare website at www.medicare.gov/nhcompare, allowing families to search by state, city, zip code or the name of the nursing home.

Providing this additional information will hopefully allow families to better evaluate the quality of care at Maryland nursing homes they are considering for their loved ones.

Our Maryland nursing home attorneys investigate potential cases for serious and life-threatening injuries caused by neglect and abuse throughout the state. To review a potential call our toll free injury hotline at (800) 522-0102 or complete our on-line request form to speak with a Maryland nursing home attorney.

Maryland Car Crash Fractures More Likely with Overweight Kids

According to the results of a new study published in the journal Injury Prevention, researchers have found that overweight children are more likely to sustain car crash fractures of their arm or leg than thinner children.

The study was based on data involving 3232 children between the ages of 9 and 15 who were involved in a car crash. About one third of the children were overweight or obese, and 15% of the children sustained a moderate to severe injury in the car crash examined.

Thinner children were found to have suffered comparatively more injuries involving the pelvis, thigh bone and collar bone, the researchers noted, attributing this to the fact that heavier children have more shock-absorbing fat in those areas.

In contrast, heavy children in auto accidents were found to be at least two and a half times more likely to sustain fractured arms and legs. The researchers indicated that there was evidence to suggest that the bones of overweight children may be more vulnerable to fractures.

Our Maryland car crash lawyers have found that in minor collisions, children are generally pretty resilient and tend to recover quickly. However, this research provides interesting data for those Maryland car accidents where fractures and other serious injuries do result.

To reduce the risk of serious injury in a car crash, Maryland parents should always make that their children are appropriately restrained for their age and size. In addition, for children under 13, the researchers recommend that they always ride in the back seat.

Dangers of Text Messaging While Driving

Several news reports have suggested that last weeks Los Angeles train accident could have been caused by an engineer who missed a stop signal because he was distracted by text messaging moments before the crash. At least 25 people were killed and 130 people injured in LA train wreck between a Metro Link commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train.

Investigators are looking into a report that a cell phone text message was sent by the commuter train engineer minutes before the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is examining the cell phone records of the engineer and of a teenager who claims to have received the message. The engineer was killed in the accident and his phone was destroyed.

Earlier this year, the Maryland legislator rejected a bill that would have banned text messaging while driving in Maryland. The law was designed to reduce the risk of Maryland auto accidents caused by distracted drivers. Similar bans are in place in Washington State, New Jersey and Phoenix.

The Maryland legislation did not pass, as law makers indicated that text messaging does not involve a distraction of a unique nature and therefore does not necessitate a ban. In their opinion, the distractions caused by text messaging is similar to that caused while talking to people in the care, speaking on a cell phone or changing the radio.

Higher gas prices may result in fewer Maryland accident fatalities

While high gas prices are not considered good news for anyone, new research suggests that they result in safer roads and fewer fatal auto accidents. Although recent news indicates that we may see a drop in gas prices in Maryland between now and Labor day, researchers estimated that if gas prices stay above $4 per gallon, the total number of accident fatalities in the United States could fall by over 12,000 next year.

A study performed at the University of Alabama and Harvard Medical School found that the price of gas has a direct impact on the number of fatal traffic crashes each month. Researchers examined fatal traffic accident statistics collected by the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) from 1985 to 2006. Economists extrapolated the link between rising gas prices and decreasing traffic deaths based on data already associated with falling gas prices.

The data indicated that fatalities are reduced by 2.3 percent for every 10% rise in gas prices, and the effects are even more dramatic for teen drivers. According to the Maryland Department of Transportation, State Highway Adminiatration, on average, more than 630 people die each year in fatal Maryland traffic accidents. So that means nearly 15 Maryland accident deaths could be avoided by a 10% increase in gas prices.

The results of the study were presented at a meeting of health economists in North Carolina last month. While the researchers certainly are not suggesting that increasing gas prices is the best way to deal with traffic fatalities, they did find that higher gas prices were much more effective at saving lives than the enactment of other measures, such as lowering the limits of permitted blood alcohol levels and mandatory seat belt laws. However, researchers did find that restrictive license measures lowered road accident fatalities by 24% nationwide for drivers between 15 and 17 years old.

The reality is that high gas prices cause people to drive slower and less often, which common sense indicates will lead to a reduction in the number of serious accidents that could result in death.