On July 27, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (the "Court" or "7th Circuit") issued a ruling which could dramatically impact litigation involving Indiana skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). In the aftermath of the Court’s decision in the case of Gorgi Talevski, by next friend Ivanka Talevski vs. Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County, et al. (No. 20-1664), SNFs and their attorneys should expect to see more cases initiated in federal courts by plaintiffs seeking not only money damages but recovery of attorney fees incurred in pursuing resident claims.
The 7th Circuit, in its decision, reversed a ruling of dismissal entered by a federal trial court in Hammond, Indiana. The trial court had determined that the plaintiff (Talevski), a former resident of a SNF in Valparaiso, Indiana, had not identified in his complaint a private right of action arising under the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act (FNHRA) which he could pursue under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983. On appeal, the 7th Circuit sided with the plaintiff, and two other federal appellate courts, in concluding that at least two of the "residents' rights" listed in the FNHRA, as enacted by Congress in 1987, are "rights" enforceable by way of a Section 1983 lawsuit in federal court.
The Talevski decision will impact nursing home litigation in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin, the three states under the jurisdiction of the 7th Circuit. The most profound changes though will most likely be in...
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