Section 7:

Heat deaths in 2001, Post-Dispatch investigation in 2002, but little has changed.

In 2003 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote:

“Nursing home regulation attracted public attention after four women died in April 2001 at Leland Health Care Center in University City. They died of heat exhaustion when the temperature in their rooms reached 95 degrees.

Last year, a Post-Dispatch investigation found that thousands of America's nursing home residents are dying from preventable causes and that those who allow the neglect to go on often face little or no penalty.

The home in University City escaped state fines because the operator later fixed the air conditioning and developed a plan for handling excess heat.”

The article goes on to say that the law has been changed, so that home might be fined today. But could those residents die in a Missouri home today? Yes.

DHSS still does a poor job, so nursing homes know they are safe failing to care for their residents.

Little has changed. But we can change that.