Government data shows that tens of thousands of people are living in nursing homes that have inadequate sprinklers or are missing them altogether, according to an article on the Miami Herald website.
A total of 385 facilities in 39 states fail to meet requirements set by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). These facilities are licensed to house more than 52,000 people, according to CMS data. Forty-four of the homes have no sprinklers at all.
CMS, which had warned last year it would not grant extensions to the August 2013 sprinkler deadline, said 97 percent of facilities meet requirements.
"CMS and states are actively engaging with the rest of the facilities to verify their compliance with this regulation and will take appropriate actions for noncompliance to ensure the safety of residents," the CMS said in a statement.
There has been progress since December, when CMS said 714 homes were not in compliance. An analysis of ownership data shows there are currently 204 for-profit facilities failing to meet sprinkler rules, 145 nonprofits and 36 run by local and state governments.
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