In 2003, a fire at a Hartford nursing home killed 16 elderly and disabled people. In the aftermath, 13 lawsuits were filed, but plaintiffs have still not received any money. In fact, they haven't even gone to trial.
The reason for the delay? A dispute over exactly how much was available under the nursing home's professional liability policy. The state Supreme Court just ruled this month, to the dismay of the plaintiffs, that just $1 million was available, and that amount would have to be split 13 ways.
Such a situation is unlikely to occur in the future. The Hartford fire — and the subsequent lawsuits — prompted legislation that was approved in the just-finished session of the General Assembly.
Now awaiting the signature of Gov. Dannel Malloy, the bill would require all nursing homes and home health care agencies, as of January 1, 2014, to have professional liability coverage that would provide up to $1 million for each person who is injured or killed because of professional negligence. However, there would be a $3 million cap for all claims within a coverage period.
The Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association backed the latest measure, as well as a similar bill proposed in 2012. "It was definitely an issue that was important to a lot of people and we got it passed with 15 minutes to spare" in the legislative session, said Rep. Gerald Fox III, co-chair of the Judiciary Committee. "I think most nursing homes do have professional liability insurance; that's something we want to make clear. But there were some nursing homes out there without it, and if they went bankrupt or into financial distress, there would be no protection."
That's what happened in the case that was before the Supreme Court. Because the company that owned the Greenwood Health Center nursing home filed for bankruptcy protection days after the fire, the only assets that the plaintiffs can file claims against are the limits of the professional liability policy. But questions over the policy terms have caused legal proceedings to drag out for more than a decade.
The Greenwood Health Center fire broke out on February 26, 2003, after psychiatric patient Leslie Andino set her bed on fire while flicking a cigarette lighter. Officials at the time said it was the 10th deadliest nursing home fire in U.S. history. Andino was charged with 16 counts of arson murder. She was later found incompetent to stand trial and remains committed to a psychiatric hospital.
Relatives of 13 of the 16 victims sued the nursing home's operator for damages, saying it failed to adequately supervise Andino. The lawsuit also made negligence claims for insufficient response and a lack of safety training by the nursing home staff.
The case was assigned on the trial docket of Superior Court Judge Marshall Berger in Hartford, but it hasn't gone very far since the issue of insurance coverage was raised. The nursing home was owned by the Lexington Healthcare Group, which was insured
by the Lexington Insurance Co., a subsidiary of AIG. (The two "Lexington" businesses are not related in any way.) The policy had two key numbers. As the insurance company saw it, at least, each of Lexington's seven nursing homes had $1 million in coverage. But the total coverage for the company was $10 million.
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