An Alameda County judge blocked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger from excluding convicted felons and shoplifters from providing in-home care in a program that serves 430,000 low-income elderly and disabled Californians.
Superior Court Judge David Hunter had ruled in February that Schwarzenegger's action was illegal because state law bars workers from the program for 10 years only if they have been convicted of child abuse, elder abuse or defrauding Medi-Cal or any patient.
In-home patients, who have access to their caregivers' criminal records, can otherwise employ anyone they want, the judge said.
Schwarzenegger, acting by executive order, is seeking to bar from the program anyone ever convicted of a felony or certain misdemeanors, which include shoplifting. After appealing Hunter's ruling in May, the governor had planned to implement his restrictions.
The state's appeal automatically suspended Hunter's decision but allowed the judge to reinstate it if he concluded that the new limits on caregivers would cause irreparable harm. Hunter made that finding, saying both caregivers and their patients would suffer if the governor's rules took effect during his appeal.
Full Article and Source:
State Can't Exclude Felons From In-Home Care
7 comments:
I don't want a felon taking care of me!
Attention citizens of CA: RUN
This is frightening.
Bet the judge would change his mind if he were a patient in a nursing home.
No wonder CA nursing homes are always in the news for theft and exploitation.
Good god, the state can't exclude felons from home care?
Can the state exclude felons from working at the bank?
Can the state exclude felons from working at the schools?
I have to pipe in on this one..... this judge is clearly out of touch and does not believe that the state can provide a dependent person with special protection/laws without violating the rights of the accused. (California has earthquakes anyway, don't live there.)
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