Audit reviews 90 complaints, incidents
The nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) released a report on Aug. 28 that reviewed investigations at the Wisconsin Veterans Home at King.
The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) oversees the home.
The state Department of Health Services (DHS) conducted 90 investigations from 2012 through 2016.
The investigations were based on incident reports and complaints involving the four skilled nursing facilities at King.
Most of these investigations involved allegations of resident abuse (41.1%) or the quality of care (32.2%).
DHS substantiated allegations in 40 of the 90 investigations (44.4%) it conducted.
DHS issued 22 citations to address deficient King practices or policies it had identified in 11 investigations.
“Our state’s veterans and spouses living at the Veterans Home at King deserve nothing but the best care. As co-chair of the Joint Audit Committee, I will work to ensure that DVA meets that goal. In particular, I am pleased that DVA filled the vacant position of administrator of the agency’s Division of Veterans Homes,” said Rep. Samantha Kerkman (R-Salem).
Kerkman is co-chairperson of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee.
Information about incident reports and complaints investigated by DHS from 2012 through 2016 was not included in LAB’s earlier evaluation of King because DHS indicated it could not provide the information to LAB.
In 2017, LAB submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to obtain data on such investigations of King.
Nearly two years later in 2019, LAB received the information it included in the report issued Wednesday.