In October 2026, a Maryland jury awarded $4 million for the family of a 49-year-old resident of an assisted living facility who had eloped from the defendant assisted living facility and was not found until days later, dead from exposure to the cold. The resident, who suffered from severe mental illness and had not been given her schizophrenia medication for days prior to her elopement, left through a first-floor window on January 6, 2022. During the three days she was missing from the assisted living facility, it snowed several inches. Her body, clad in thin pajamas, was discovered by a neighbor less than one hundred feet from the assisted living home.
The resident had reportedly eloped from the assisted living facility on two prior occasions. When the local police and first responders searched the area where her body was later found, she reportedly was not found in the area.
The defendant assisted living home operator did not participate in the lawsuit, resulting in a default order being entered. A Montgomery County jury was convened to determine the amount of damages. After a two-day jury trial, the jury awarded $1.25 million each to the resident’s two daughters, and $1.5 million to the resident’s estate.
Not only is the jury’s award subject to reduction due to the cap on noneconomic damages in Maryland, but the assisted living home operator did not have insurance that could be used to pay the judgment. The assisted living facility reportedly closed as a result of a decrease in the number of residents and declining revenue.
An assisted living program is a residential or facility-based program that provides housing and supportive services, supervision, personalized assistance, health-related services, or a combination of such services that meets the needs of individuals who need assistance with the activities of daily living.
The Nyeli Rose Lewis Act of 2026, signed into law by Maryland’s Governor on April 14, 2026, requires that each nursing home and assisted living program in Maryland must notify each resident and prospective resident in writing or by written electronic communication if (1) the nursing home or assisted living program does not maintain professional liability insurance coverage or (2) such coverage has lapsed for any period of time and has not been renewed. The notification must be provided to a prospective resident (1) at their first visit during any period during which the nursing home or assisted living program does not maintain professional liability insurance coverage and (2) if the nursing home or assisted living program does not maintain such coverage at the time the prospective resident applies for admission, at the time of the application. If the coverage lapses, notification must also be provided to each resident within 30 days after the date the coverage has lapsed. The notification must be signed by the prospective resident at the time of application for admission or by the resident at the time of notification of the lapse in coverage. Notifications must be retained by the nursing home or assisted living program as a part of the nursing home or assisted living program’s records. Each nursing home or facility-based assisted living program operating in Maryland that does not maintain professional liability insurance coverage must post in a conspicuous place visible to residents and guests that the nursing home or facility‑based assisted living program does not maintain such coverage.
The Act took effect on October 1, 2026.
If you or a loved one may have been injured (or worse) as a result of nursing home negligence or assisted living negligence in Maryland or in another U.S. state, you should promptly find a Maryland medical malpractice lawyer (nursing home claim lawyer or assisted living claim lawyer), or a medical malpractice lawyer in your state, who may investigate your nursing home or assisted living claim for you and represent you or your loved one in a nursing home or assisted living case, if appropriate.
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