Most of New York's nursing homes are not receiving a visit from a representative of the state's oversight program for the facilities, according to a study released Thursday by AARP New York. 

The study comes after nursing homes and long-term care facilities were battered by the pandemic and scrutiny was placed on whether the state did enough to ensure its residents as well as staff were protected from the spread of COVID-19. 

AARP's study found 96% of the nursing homes and adult care facilities in New York City did not receive a visit from the oversight program in the first three months of the year. Data also shows 58% of the facilities in the rest of the state have not received a visit from the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program. 

“The fact that almost every nursing home and adult care facility in New York City and over half across the state didn’t get a single visit from a federally-required oversight agency in the first quarter of this year is appalling,” said AARP New York State Director Beth Finkel. “Nursing home residents are our parents, our grandparents, our spouses, our loved ones. They are among the most vulnerable people in our society, and they deserve better.”

The group is calling for $15 million in spending for the state budget next year for funding for the program. There are about 1,400 nursing homes and other long-term care facilities in New York state that fall under the jurisdiction of the oversight program. 

“New York State’s match for this partially federally-funded program is one of the lowest in the nation, leaving providers overly reliant on volunteers,” said Lindsay Miller, the executive director of the New York Association on Independent Living. “This has become a huge problem as it is increasingly difficult to recruit volunteers for the program and it is crucial the program have a presence in facilities across the state.”

The Hochul administration this month selected an outside consulting firm to review how the state handled a variety of issues during the height of the pandemic, including nursing homes and long-term care facilities. The former Cuomo administration faced scrutiny after requiring nursing homes to not turn away COVID-19 positive patients amid a concern over hospitals being overwhelmed by the rise in cases.