JEFFERSON CITY — Sen. Adam Schnelting, R-St. Charles, said he found signs of neglect with his mom when she was left alone for eight to nine hours with no help, and she expressed fear of the staff at the facility she was staying at in Missouri.
Schnelting saw bruises on his mom’s face from what he believed were the result of someone at the long-term care facility punching her. His mom passed away shortly after sustaining the injuries, which included blood clots.
Despite numerous interactions between police and administrators of the facility, no person was charged with the abuse and Schnelting and his family never found justice.
Schnelting introduced a bill this session to address elder abuse in Missouri.
Senate Bill 910 seeks to increase transparency and accountability in long-term care facilities in Missouri through three main aspects: liability insurance requirements, icons on state department websites and increasing the severity of elder abuse charges.
Since Missouri does not currently require facilities to carry liability insurance, the bill would require that all facilities across Missouri have a minimum of $1 million in liability insurance.
The bill also increases penalties for elder abuse cases, making abuse or neglect by a caregiver in a long-term facility a Class E felony, which can lead to imprisonment for up to four years or one year in jail. Elder abuse is currently a Class A misdemeanor.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services would also be required, under the bill, to display a symbol on its website identifying facilities with abuse or neglect cases, bringing a federal system to the state level.
Schnelting’s bill had a committee hearing in March after the bill sat in committee for months. This was the first piece of legislation that Schnelting submitted for the session in December.
The bill moved out of committee in early April, but with the general session coming to a close this week, no other progress has been made.
This is the third year Schnelting has introduced this sort of legislation.
“If we don’t rectify those shortcomings, we’re going to be failing our older generations,” Schnelting said regarding elder abuse in Missouri.
In November, Schnelting joined Lt. Gov. David Wasinger on a statewide tour that brought together community members to talk about elder abuse and possible solutions in a series of forums.
Wasinger and Schnelting shared with communities across Missouri their personal connections to elder abuse as both of their mothers dealt with neglect and abuse while staying in a facility. Schnelting also sought feedback on the solutions he planned on bringing to this year’s session.
“We have a very serious problem,” Schnelting said during the November forum in Columbia. “It’s very, very important that we get a handle on this.”
Wasinger, who was elected in 2024, serves as the official senior advocate for elder Missourians. He joined Schnelting in the forum to tell his own story and hear from other residents on how to decrease elder abuse in the state.
“We heard story after story about these issues, and it’s heartbreaking,” Wasinger said. “It (can) touch every family and socioeconomic class.”
Wasinger’s mother went into a senior living facility because of medical issues. She was unable to move properly because of fluid in her legs and was left unattended for periods of time, he said. Wasinger and his family voiced their concerns to administrators of the facility and moved his mom out and into an independent living place. Wasinger points to inadequate staffing as one of the main reasons for this neglect.
“She didn’t receive the care that she deserved, and it was really, frankly, a very sad situation,” he said.
In Wasinger’s current position, he has worked with legislators like Schnelting to bring awareness to issues affecting seniors in Missouri. His drive for reforming these issues stems from his own mother’s story.
“I had heard stories about it, but when I saw it personally with my mother … you’re angry. You’re sad, it’s just a range of emotions,” Wasinger said.
Wasinger said that his office is consistently receiving calls from constituents about senior related issues. He is working on getting a senior advocate for his office to specifically help monitor problems and concerns related to seniors.
“It resonates with every family,” Wasinger said.
Missouri is ranked 38th overall in the country for long-term care services and support, according to a 2023 report from AARP.
The report also ranked Missouri as 47th for safety and quality in facilities. Additionally, turnover for registered nursing staff in facilities is at 50.2%, according to quarterly data released from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Tim Blattel, an assisted living facility worker of 44 years and CEO of Twin Oaks Estate, said he opposes Schnelting’s proposed legislation because of the possible impact it will have on family-owned facilities in Missouri.
“It’s going to raise the cost even higher, and that’s why we are seeing a record number of small operators getting out of health care,” Blattel said.
Blattel agrees there is an issue with elder abuse in the state but emphasizes there is a way to protect seniors and facilities at the same time.
“I would love to see a peer review and assistance program where we work together to help support each other more,” Blattel said.
Long-term care facilities in Missouri receive funding from federal and state programs. The Older American Act and Social Security Act allows for federal funding to be allocated to senior services like long-term care facilities. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services distributes these amounts to facilities across the state.
However, Blattel said there is a shortage in funding for nursing homes that creates inadequate staffing issues in many smaller long-term care facilities. He expressed concern about how much more nursing facilities would have to pay toward insurance and maintenance under Schnelting’s proposed legislation.
“We need to incentivize and work together to get funding in these rural areas,” Blattel said.
Schnelting said that he recognizes the additional cost that insurance would be for facilities but emphasizes that it is necessary for providing a layer of accountability and transparency at long-term care facilities.
“At the end of the day, it ensures that when a facility harms a patient, those costs are not absorbed by the taxpayers of that facility for that negligence,” Schnelting said.
Julie Peetz, executive director of Missouri Association of Area Agencies on Aging, an advocacy organization for seniors in Missouri, supported Schnelting’s claims that there needs to be transparency and accountability within the home where abuse occurs, but noted the possible dangers of overregulation of nursing facilities.
“We want to target the bad actors, but not penalize quality providers,” Peetz said.
Despite the lack of action on his bill this year, Schnelting said he plans to bring this legislation back to the Capitol for a fourth time next January.