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VA ASKS COLORADO TO INSPECT VETERANS
ASSISTED-
LIVING COTTAGES -- Agency cites reports of conditions
at Homelake in Monte Vista. An official has
warned it may lose funding.
Homelake
Background here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfAPR07/nf040407-3.htm
Story here...
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_5630642
Story below:
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VA asks state inspection of vet facility
The U.S. agency cites reports of conditions at
Homelake in Monte Vista. An official has warned it may lose funding.
By Karen Augé
Denver Post Staff Writer
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has asked state health officials
to conduct an inspection of the troubled Homelake assisted-living
cottages for veterans in Monte Vista.
VA officials said they asked the state to visit the home because of
public attention, both in the state legislature and in the media, to the
home's deteriorating condition.
"We wanted to respond positively and quickly to public concerns," said
Paul Sherbo, regional VA spokesman.
"We have registered our concerns in various ways," he said.
Recent inspections of the four nursing homes the state operates for
veterans have uncovered a litany of problems.
The state Department of Human Services, which operates the homes, said
budget squeezes of the past several years have meant there was no money
for upkeep and renovation.
At a legislative hearing in February, federal VA official Wayne Valey
warned that if the state does not make repairs so that the veterans
homes meet federal standards, the VA may withdraw its affiliation and
financial support.
Homelake consists of 26 cottages built between 1912 and the 1930s. The
cottages have had little major renovation since then.
John Schlue, director of the state health department's health facilities
division, said the state does two different types of inspections of
nursing homes:
One inspection examines the quality of health care.
Another inspection checks whether physical structures meet fire and
safety codes.
A health-care inspection last August gave the facility a clean bill of
health, Schlue said.
A fire and safety inspection last September, however, found several
problems, including a lack of working fire sprinklers and alarm systems.
Inspectors also found that it would be difficult for residents to escape
in an emergency because of locked doors in the building.
Schlue said that because Homelake is a veterans care center, operators'
plans to fix the problems are submitted to the federal Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), not the state health department.
Schlue said he wasn't aware of any plans for correcting the problems.
CMS officials could not be reached for comment late Monday.
Staff writer Karen Augé can be reached at 303-954-1733.
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Larry Scott --
