The Resident Councils of Washington and the Washington State Ombudsman Program filed a suit in federal district court in Seattle charging that the federal government's feeding assistant regulations violate the Nursing Home Reform Act. The regulations, which the ANA opposed in comments filed with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2002, allow nursing homes to use paid workers who don't meet minimum training requirements for nursing services to assist residents with eating. The regulations also allow minimal supervision of feeding assistants and don't prohibit nursing homes from using them to displace certified nursing assistants.

A copy of the lawsuit can be found on the Web site for the National Citizens' Council for Nursing Home Reform. For more information about the suit, Resident Councils of Washington v. Thompson, contact plaintiff's attorney Eric Carlson at the National Senior Citizens Law Center in Los Angeles, California, (213) 639-0930, ext. 313, or Toby Edelman at the Center for Medicare Advocacy in Washington, DC, at (202) 216-0028, ext.104. Carlson said the lawsuit is a nationwide class action, and he's seeking additional plaintiffs. Anyone who is interested in joining the lawsuit or helping to identify plaintiffs should contact Carlson.