New York Assembly Democrats Call for Independent Investigation of Adult Homes

New York state Democrats on June 12 called for an independent prosecutor to investigate "criminal misconduct and hazards" in the state's adult homes, which house about 15,000 mentally ill residents, and "alleged neglect" by the administration of Gov. George Pataki (R) in "protecting residents," the Albany Times Union reports. Four committee chairs in the state Assembly accused the administration of "accepting fines at a fraction of what the violations called for, and for being unduly influenced by lobbyists and its own unidentified officials with relatives who own or operate" adult homes (Gormley, Albany Times Union, 6/13). State Assembly Democrats have criticized state health officials for problems with the adult homes, despite reforms that the administration announced last month to increase oversight over the facilities (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 6/10). "This is a scandal that the state has essentially engineered," state Assembly Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried (D) said. However, according to John Signor, a spokesperson for the state Health Department, "The claim is complete and utter nonsense and typical of the Assembly's partisan attacks." He pointed out that the administration has increased the number of inspectors, launched more than 500 investigations and taken 74 "enforcement actions" in the past year (Albany Times Union, 6/13). In addition, the administration on June 11 announced plans to establish a new office to address "serious threats" to residents in the state's adult homes and build criminal cases against the facilities. The office would have between five and 10 staff members and include a representative of the state attorney general (Levy, New York Times, 6/12).