DeLaney seeks to protect vulnerable Hoosiers by excluding nursing homes from Republicans’ overly broad civil liabilities shield

INDIANAPOLIS – State Representative Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) today proposed excluding nursing homes and long-term care facilities from COVID-19 civil liabilities protections. The amendment to Senate Bill 1 is his second attempt to modify the legislation to protect the most vulnerable Hoosiers and their families. The proposal failed with a vote of 29-62.

“Comprehensive care facilities should not be allowed to abdicate their responsibilities to residents and aggrieved loved ones,” DeLaney said. “The supermajority's broad pro-business, anti-family stance on civil liability shields will allow neglect and systemic failures resulting in the loss of life to go unchecked. A taxpayer-funded industry already accustomed to forgiving regulatory and oversight practices does not need these additional protections.

“The inherent communal nature of these facilities coupled with the age and health concerns of residents make nursing homes more susceptible to infectious disease outbreak. These risks were clear long before the COVID-19 pandemic. Proper protocols and procedures can reduce such risks when enacted at the onset of an outbreak. Families, future residents and the state deserve to know if negligence or poor infection control played a role in the loss of life.

“It defies logic that elected officials would desert our duty to protect our most vulnerable constituents. We should not watch narrow corporate interests supersede justice. I plan to continue to work with my colleagues in the House and Senate to improve this legislation.”