West Virginia prohibits the use of recording devices such as Ring cameras in nursing home rooms.

English Meadows assisted living facility in Scott Depot, W.Va. (Amelia Ferrell Knisely | West Virginia Watch)

West Virginia has a law banning the use of video recording devices, such as Ring cameras, in the rooms of seniors living in nursing homes.

A spokesman for the state Department of Health said the ban has been in place since 2004, but the operator of the assisted living facility said the rule was reinterpreted earlier this year and now prohibits cameras in resident rooms, raising safety concerns.

Harper Gardner is the director of sales at English Meadows, an assisted living facility in Scott Depot. The facility, which is privately owned, allowed residents to use private cameras in their rooms as long as staff was notified.

Some residents would choose to have one for safety reasons. In other cases, family members would install cameras to check on the elderly person and review their care.

“Our view is that if you’re a provider that’s growing, you shouldn’t have anything to hide,” Gardner said. “It helps protect our staff and our business by showing that we’re providing good care.”

Gardner said that earlier this year, during an annual inspection by the state’s Office of Healthcare Facility Licensing and Certification, he learned that the state’s long-standing code regarding cameras in facilities was being interpreted to prohibit the use of private cameras.

“(Residents) were very angry and disappointed, especially those who have their own capabilities and can make their own decisions about healthcare and business. They themselves are using the camera more for safety reasons,” he said.

West Virginia Watch reached out to the Department of Health Facilities for clarification on how the policy was interpreted and what might have prompted the change. Some private providers already had policies banning cameras in resident rooms.

In response, department spokeswoman Annie Moore said in an email: status code “restricts the use of video and audio devices to common areas, thereby prohibiting their use in residents’ rooms by any party.” It came into effect on April 29, 2004.

“The substance of this rule has not changed or been proposed to change during the life of the Assisted Living Residence Legislative Rule. All versions of the rule are available on the West Virginia Secretary of State’s website,” she wrote.

Moore did not respond to additional questions about the policy.

According to Moore’s email, Gardner said that prior to this year, his facility had not received any citations for violating the rule, even though it went into effect 20 years ago.

Michael Baker’s mother lived in English Meadows where she suffered from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Baker, a Hurricane resident, placed a Ring camera in his mother’s room in 2021 to monitor the quality of care she was receiving as her health deteriorated and she became bedridden.

“Her communication had deteriorated significantly, so we needed a camera to monitor her care to make sure she was being cared for properly 24/7,” he said. “It was really the only way to do it.”

Baker was surprised when he was told in March that he could no longer have a camera in his mother’s room. He said he contacted OHFLAC, hoping to get an explanation for why he wanted to use the camera.

His mother died in June, and Baker said the end of her life was made more stressful by not having the opportunity to check on her care.

“It was completely unnecessary,” he said. “It just added to the stress level.”

Gardner is concerned that residents and their families will start placing “nanny cams” ​​or “teddy bear cams” ​​in residents’ rooms. Previously, when his facility knew there was a camera in a room, staff would take precautions to point it away from bathrooms or hallways to avoid safety issues.

West Virginia is a one-party consent state, meaning you don’t have to notify anyone that they’re being recorded.

“Families won’t stop using cameras, we just won’t see them,” Gardner said.

Some states, including Ohiopassed regulations allowing nursing home residents or their family members to install electronic monitoring devices in residents’ rooms to monitor care.

West Virginia law governing the use of cameras in health care facilities applies only to facilities licensed by the state.

DoHF is investigating sale or privatization seven state-owned long-term care facilities due to aging buildings and costs.

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