Senate committee advances bill letting residents or families install cameras in care apartments

The Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted to send House Bill 337 to the Senate floor with a "do pass" recommendation after a lengthy hearing that split providers and family advocates over allowing cameras in long-term care resident apartments.

Representative Dory Healy, the bill's sponsor, told the committee the measure responds to constituent concerns and research about abuse in long-term care. "It came from constituents, and it's really that simple," Healy said, noting national statistics she cited to illustrate the problem.

The bill would let "a resident or resident guardian or health care agent" authorize installation and use of an electronic monitoring device in a resident's apartment, with conditions intended to protect privacy. Healy pointed the bill requires the device be "installed in a location that meets facility standards and allows facility staff to assist the residents while maintaining the privacy of the residents' sensitive and intimate body areas," and she said the law would require residents to have a private room when a device is used.

Supporters and family advocates at the hearing said cameras can document suspected abuse and give families peace of mind. Healy closed the…