Department of Health and
Human Services
Administration on Aging
Elder Rights
Long-term care ombudsmen are advocates for residents of nursing homes, board and care homes, assisted living facilities and similar adult care facilities. Since the Ombudsman Program began in 1972, thousands of paid and volunteer ombudsmen working in every state and three other jurisdictions have made a dramatic difference in the lives of long-term care residents. LTC ombudsmen advocate on behalf of individuals and groups of residents, provide information to residents and their families about the long-term care system, and work to effect systems changes at the local, state and national level. They provide an on-going presence in long-term care facilities, monitoring care and conditions and providing a voice for those who are unable to speak for themselves.
The Ombudsman Program is established under the Older Americans Act, which is administered by the Administration on Aging (AoA). Local ombudsmen work on behalf of residents in hundreds of communities throughout the country.
About one thousand paid and 14,000 volunteer staff (8,000 certified) investigate over 260,000 complaints each year. They provide information to more than 280,000 people on a myriad of topics including how to select and pay for a long-term care facility.
- Directory of State Long Term Care Ombudsman (Off site)
- National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center (Off-site)
- Questions relating to the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program should be directed to Sue Wheaton
- Requests for information about other aging issues and programs should be directed to aoainfo@aoa.gov. Comments about the AoA Web Site may directed to webmanager@aoa.gov
LTC Ombudsman Sub Navigation:
- Legislation & Regulations
- LTC Ombudsman Reports & National, State Data
- National Ombudsman Reporting System (NORS)
- Program Instructions, Information Memoranda and other AoA Issuances
- Fact Sheet: Ombudsman Program | PDF - 74KB | Word - 97KB
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The following three links provide emergency planning checklists for people living in long-term care facilities and their families:
residents and long-term care ombudsmen
;
long-term care providers 
;
and people with medical needs living at home