WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) led 11 of her colleagues in calling on the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to act in response to nursing homes evicting residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. The letter cites New York Times reports that nursing homes have evicted more than 6,400 residents since the beginning of the pandemic.

In addition to Senator Hassan, the letter was signed by Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tom Carper (D-DE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN).

“We write to express serious concerns about recent reports that thousands of nursing home residents across the United States have been evicted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Such evictions have been of great concern for many years, but they are particularly troubling at a time when seniors and people who experience disabilities are among the most vulnerable to a disease that is spiraling out of control in many states,” wrote the Senators. “We seek assurances that you will use your existing authority to ensure that nursing homes are prevented from, and held accountable for, inappropriate discharges and evictions.”

The Senators added, “It is simply egregious to forcibly evict a resident and place them in a non-medical facility without access to essential medical care, supportive services, and protections against COVID-19 infection.”

In the letter, the Senators discuss current CMS restrictions on evicting nursing home and long-term care residents, but raise that there is a need for significant additional action given that the COVID-19 pandemic has limited visits from CMS inspectors and residents’ families.

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