Carson: Federal Legislation Needed to Solve Nursing Home Problems

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TULSA (AP) -- Federal legislation is needed to deal with dangerous nursing home problems cited in a new survey, U.S. Rep. Brad Carson said Monday.

Increased federal oversight of nursing homes could expose and eliminate deficiencies that endanger their elderly residents, Carson said in a news conference.

He plans to introduce legislation this summer that could call for federal officials to monitor staffing levels in nursing homes, increase penalties for those homes that break the law and increase public access to information.

A survey on Oklahoma nursing homes requested by Carson, D- Oklahoma, found that only one in six complied with federal laws passed …