Insights & Resources

October 11, 2022 | Alerts

Nursing Home Facilities Need to Ensure Compliance with the Federal Arbitration Rule as Supreme Court Declines Review

Nursing Home Facilities Need to Ensure Compliance with the Federal Arbitration Rule as Supreme Court Declines Review

On October 3, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States denied the request to review the Eighth Circuit’s decision that upheld a federal rule that limited the use of arbitration agreements in nursing homes.  The request for review stems from a petition filed by multiple nursing homes challenging the federal rule, arguing that the rule should not be upheld because it conflicts with various federal arbitration laws, namely, the Administrative Procedure Act, the Federal Arbitration Act, and the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
The arbitration rule prevents nursing homes from requiring that a resident sign an arbitration agreement prior to the resident’s admission.

The rule also requires the following:

  • Nursing home facilities must ensure that residents (or their representatives) understand the terms of any arbitration agreement before they sign such agreement;
  • Nursing home facilities are required to keep copies of the arbitration agreements for at least five (5) years; and
  • Nursing home facilities are required to provide residents with thirty (30) calendar days to rescind the agreement.

The penalties for nursing home facilities that choose not to comply with such requirements include, but are not limited to, sanctions and exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

*   *   *   *   *

Should you have any questions regarding the above, please contact the Garfunkel Wild attorney with whom you regularly work, or contact us at [email protected].