Camera's in Ohio Long-Term Care Facilities Update May 30. 2021

Our state quickly passed an immunity Law during the pandemic that overly protected long-term care facilities from accountability and left no protections for this volunerable population with high needs. Everything the industry wanted was worded into this bill. However, now there is a chance to protect the residents by allowing electronic monitoring in long-term care.

A last minute sub bill (SB 58 ) to allow electronic monitoring in resident rooms was presented and passed in the Senate Heallth Committee on May 19, 2021. It went to the Senate floor the same day and passed in the Senate with no opposition. This bill has been introduced in the house and will be sent to committee.

We have major concerns with this sub bill. It does not appear to include assisted living and among other things has no real clear procedure to follow to put a camera in. While this bill appears to make it easy for a resident or their legal representative to put in a camera, we do agree.

This bill could actually stop hidden cameras from being put in as they can be currently as there is no law one way or another. However, if you need consent to put in a camera, this could easily take away hidden cameras.

Just because a title of a law sounds good, does not mean that it is. We need to take time to read these bills as many times what is in them is much different that what is perceived to be. No law is better than a bad one.

We are following and advocating on this bill as it should have went throgh in the pandemic just as a rush to a immunity law was.

Read the latest Senate version of SB 58 sent to the House for consideration here

Easy to read analysis of SB 58 here