Caregiver guide
Nursing home residents' rights: what every family should know
Nursing home residents' rights are protections under federal law for everyone who lives in a nursing home that takes Medicare or Medicaid. They include the right to dignity, privacy, visitors, a say in their own care and a life free from abuse, neglect and unfair discharge. Dementia doesn't take these rights away.
Why knowing your person's rights matters
Moving someone you love into a nursing home is one of the hardest choices a caregiver makes. Many people care at home until it's breaking them. Then they face guilt, and sometimes criticism from people who never did the daily care.
Choosing a nursing home doesn't mean you stop caring. It means your role changes. You become your person's eyes, ears and voice. Knowing their rights helps you speak up with confidence when something isn't right.
This guide explains residents' rights in plain words and tells you who to call in Florida. It's general information, not legal advice.
What are nursing home residents' rights?
A federal law passed in 1987, often called the Nursing Home Reform Act, says nursing homes must protect and promote the rights of each resident. Every nursing home that accepts Medicare or Medicaid has to follow it. States, including Florida, can add more protections.
The main idea is simple: a nursing home is the resident's home. People who live there keep the same basic rights as anyone else, plus extra protections because they rely on others for care.
List of resident rights
Here are the rights families ask about most, in plain words.
Dignity and respect
To be treated with courtesy, called by the name they prefer, and helped in a way that protects their dignity.
Freedom from abuse and neglect
No physical, verbal, sexual or emotional abuse, no neglect and no misuse of their money, from staff, visitors or other residents.
Freedom from restraints
No physical restraints or medicines used to control behavior for discipline or staff convenience.
Privacy
Privacy in personal care, medical records, phone calls, mail and visits.
Visitors
To see family, friends and others they choose, and to refuse visitors they don't want.
Information
To be told about their health, care, costs and any changes in room, roommate or services, in a way they can understand.
A say in their care
To take part in care planning meetings, choose their own doctor and accept or refuse treatment.
Choices about daily life
To make choices about when to get up and go to bed, what to wear, what activities to join and how to spend their time.
Personal belongings
To keep and use their own clothes and some furniture, photos and keepsakes, within reason and safety.
Their own money
To manage their own money, or choose who does, and to see records if the facility holds funds for them.
Speaking up without fear
To make complaints and have them handled promptly, without being punished or treated worse.
Staying in their home
Protection from being moved out or transferred except for reasons the law allows, with written notice and the right to appeal.
What are the 5 resident rights?
There's no single official list of five. Federal law includes many more rights than that. But training programs often group them into a few big ideas. A common way to remember them:
- Dignity and respect: being treated as a person, not a task.
- Self-determination: making choices about care and daily life.
- Privacy: in body, records, mail and visits.
- Freedom from abuse, neglect and restraints.
- The right to be heard: to complain and get problems fixed without fear.
Residents' rights when your person has dementia
A person living with dementia has every one of these rights. As the disease progresses, a family member or legal decision-maker may need to help exercise them.
- Be part of the care plan. Ask to attend care planning meetings. Share what calms your person, what upsets them, their routines and their life story.
- Know who can decide. A health care surrogate, power of attorney or guardian can speak for your person when they can't. If those papers aren't in place, read our guide to power of attorney for dementia.
- Watch for medicine used to sedate. Ask what each medicine is for. Medicines shouldn't be used just to keep a person quiet or easy to manage. Talk to the doctor about any concerns.
- Protect their money. The nursing home must keep good records if it manages funds for your person. Our guide to dementia and money problems has more on spotting misuse.
- Comfort at the end of life. Your person keeps their rights through the very end, including a say in comfort care and hospice. See our guide to end-of-life dementia care.
What can a nursing home resident refuse?
Residents have the right to refuse treatment, medicines, tests, baths, meals and activities. Staff should explain the risks of refusing and respect the choice.
For a person with dementia, "no" often means "not now" or "not like this." A good care team will try again later, try a different approach, or ask the family what has worked at home. If your person keeps refusing something important, like medicine or eating, ask for a care plan meeting.
Can a nursing home discharge a resident with nowhere to go?
A nursing home can't simply ask a resident to leave. Federal rules allow a discharge or transfer only for certain reasons, such as:
- The facility can't meet the resident's needs
- The resident's health has improved so they no longer need nursing home care
- The resident's presence puts the health or safety of others at risk
- The bill hasn't been paid after reasonable notice
- The facility is closing
In most cases, the nursing home must give written notice, usually 30 days ahead, explain the reason and how to appeal, and help plan a safe place to go. If you get a discharge notice, call the Florida Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program right away.
What to do if your person's rights aren't respected
You can use any of these steps, in any order. If someone is in danger, call 911.
Talk to the staff
Start with the nurse, social worker or administrator. Be specific about what happened and what you'd like to change.
Ask for a care plan meeting
Bring your notes. Agree on next steps and who will do them.
Keep records
Write down dates, times, names and what was said. Take photos of injuries or problems if you can.
Call the long-term care ombudsman
Florida's Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program is free, confidential and on the resident's side. Call 1-888-831-0404. Contact details should also be posted in the facility.
File a complaint with the state
Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration licenses nursing homes and investigates complaints. Call 1-888-419-3456.
Report abuse or neglect
Call the Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-96-ABUSE (1-800-962-2873). For a crime or emergency, call 911.
Rights for LGBTQ residents
LGBTQ residents have exactly the same rights as everyone else. That includes visits from a spouse, partner or chosen family, sharing a room with a spouse or partner when both agree, being called by the right name and pronouns, and dressing in a way that fits who they are. Staff can't refuse care or treat anyone worse because of sexual orientation or gender identity.
The downloadable fact sheet below, from the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, focuses on these protections.
Getting help in Central Florida
Choosing a nursing home is easier when you know what to look for. ADRC's free Information & Referral service shares local nursing homes, memory care, assisted living and elder law attorneys, based on caregiver experience. A free Care Navigation session can help you plan the move.
Many caregivers find the weeks after a move just as hard as the years before it. You're welcome in ADRC's free caregiver support groups, and our guide to caregiver self-care has ideas for this new chapter.
Source: fact sheet by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care; this page is ADRC's own summary.
Questions about nursing home residents' rights
What is not considered a right as a nursing home resident?
Residents' rights don't include the right to put others in danger, to get any service the facility doesn't offer, or to stay without paying for care when other payment isn't available. A resident can't demand care that the doctor says is unsafe. Rights also have limits when they affect other residents' rights.
How do I sue a nursing home for neglect?
Talk to an attorney who handles nursing home cases. First, make sure your person is safe, report the problem to the state and the ombudsman, and keep careful records and photos. ADRC can share referrals to elder law attorneys at (407) 436-7750.
Who is the long-term care ombudsman?
An ombudsman is a trained advocate for people who live in nursing homes and assisted living. They help residents and families solve problems, and their help is free and confidential. In Florida, call 1-888-831-0404.
Do assisted living residents have the same rights?
Assisted living facilities follow state rules, not the federal nursing home rules. Florida has its own bill of rights for assisted living residents, with many similar protections. The Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program helps assisted living residents too.
Can the nursing home limit visiting hours?
Residents have the right to see the visitors they choose. Facilities can set reasonable safety rules, but they shouldn't keep family away without a good reason. If you're being kept from your person, call the ombudsman.
What are residents' responsibilities in a nursing home?
Residents and families are asked to follow reasonable facility rules, respect other residents and staff, share accurate health information and pay for care as agreed. For a person with dementia, the family often helps with these.
Is there a printable list of nursing home residents' rights?
Yes. Download the fact sheet below and print it. Nursing homes are also required to give residents a written copy of their rights and post contact information for the ombudsman.
My person with dementia can't speak up. Who protects their rights?
You can. A family member, health care surrogate, power of attorney or guardian can speak up for a resident who can't. Go to care plan meetings, visit at different times of day and call the ombudsman if something seems wrong.
Download the fact sheet
Keep a copy of this residents' rights fact sheet from the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care with your person's papers.
Have questions about a nursing home?
Alzheimer's & Dementia Resource Center (ADRC)
- Monday to Friday: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM
The Alzheimer's & Dementia Resource Center (ADRC) in Winter Park, Florida, offers free help for caregivers in Orange and Seminole counties, including referrals to nursing homes, memory care and elder law attorneys; call (407) 436-7750. In an emergency, call 911. The Alzheimer's Association 24/7 Helpline is 800-272-3900.