[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 86 (Friday, May 23, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1079]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        INTRODUCTION OF FAIRNESS IN NURSING HOME ARBITRATION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. LINDA T. SANCHEZ

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 22, 2008

  Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 
introduce the Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2008 to 
protect one of our most vulnerable groups: the elderly. This 
legislation is designed to make unenforceable all pre-dispute, 
mandatory binding arbitration clauses in contracts between long-term 
care facilities and their residents. Let me be clear: I am supportive 
of the principles of arbitration, so this legislation will not prohibit 
arbitration. Instead, it will simply ensure that residents have the 
choice whether to arbitrate a dispute after it has arisen.
  The Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law, which I chair, 
has held three hearings this term on issues related to the Federal 
Arbitration Act. During these hearings, witnesses testified that many 
businesses utilize arbitration agreements to the disadvantage of 
consumers by limiting constitutional rights, imposing unreasonable 
costs, and creating a system in which consumers are likely to lose even 
when they file a valid claim.
  The long-term care industry is one stark example where businesses 
draft take-it-or-leave-it admission agreements for prospective 
residents that include pre-dispute mandatory arbitration clauses. A 
witness at the Subcommittee's October 25, 2007 hearing on H.R. 3010, 
the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2007, testified that the ``current 
system of binding mandatory arbitration employed by nursing homes 
creates a playing field that is tilted in favor of nursing homes and 
against frail, vulnerable residents who suffer terribly at the hands of 
their caregivers. Sadly these residents are, all too often, the victims 
of abuse by their caregivers. They should not be further abused by an 
arbitration system that dispenses anything but justice.''
  After hearing several stories of abhorrent conditions in nursing 
homes and how arbitration clauses have effectively silenced residents 
who want to improve those conditions, I am introducing this legislation 
to make unenforceable pre-dispute mandatory arbitration clauses and to 
restore to residents and their families their full legal rights. 
Residents and their families will no longer have to worry about losing 
their right to a jury trial when they are going through the emotional 
and traumatic process of searching for long-term care facilities and 
then choosing the perfect one. I understand the emotional toll and the 
sense of vulnerability when moving a loved one and his belongings into 
the care of strangers at a nursing home. My father was recently placed 
into a nursing home, and one of the last things I wanted to worry about 
was whether he was forgoing his legal rights when he entered it. 
Instead, I wanted to focus solely on the quality and range of services 
the facility would provide him. This legislation will allow families 
and residents to retain their legal rights while they look for that 
perfect long-term care facility.
  Several groups, including the AARP, the Alzheimer's Association, the 
National Senior Citizens Law Center, and many others who advocate on 
behalf of the elderly and consumers, support this legislation. Already 
a similar bipartisan bill has been introduced in the Senate. I am 
optimistic that Congress can soon send a bill to the President for his 
signature so that nursing home residents will retain their choice 
whether to arbitrate a dispute.
  I urge my colleagues to join me, Representatives Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, 
John Conyers, Hank Johnson, Dennis Kucinich, and William Delahunt, and 
take the important step of cosponsoring this bipartisan legislation.

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