Nationwide Nursing Home & Abuse Lawyers
Dedicated legal advocates protecting your loved ones nationwide. When nursing homes break their promise of care, our experienced attorneys fight for the justice your family deserves.
Influenza (the flu) isn’t just a seasonal illness for elderly nursing home residents. It’s a potentially deadly threat—one that spreads quickly in close environments, weakens vulnerable immune systems, and can lead to hospitalization, long-term complications, or death.
At The Higgins Firm Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers, we represent families across the United States whose loved ones suffered serious harm or passed away due to preventable flu outbreaks in nursing homes. While not every flu case results from neglect, far too many are made worse—or enabled—by failed infection control, understaffing, or delayed medical intervention. When that happens, we step in to help.
While the flu may be manageable for healthy adults, it poses a serious health risk to older adults, particularly those with:
Nursing home residents are especially vulnerable due to their close proximity to others, reliance on staff for hygiene and medication, and frequent exposure to visitors and healthcare workers.
Every year, the CDC attributes thousands of deaths to flu complications among adults aged 65 and older. Many of these occur in long-term care settings.
Facilities have a legal and ethical duty to protect residents from contagious illnesses. The CDC and CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) have established clear guidelines for influenza prevention and outbreak management in nursing homes.
| Area | Best Practices |
| Vaccination | Annual flu shots for residents and staff, offered and documented |
| Staff Hygiene | Regular handwashing, PPE use, and sick leave policies |
| Visitor Policies | Screening and restriction of visitors during flu season or active outbreaks |
| Symptom Monitoring | Daily checks for fever, cough, sore throat, and fatigue |
| Isolation Procedures | Prompt separation of symptomatic residents to limit spread |
| Treatment Protocols | Access to antiviral medications when appropriate |
| Staffing Plans | Adequate staffing to avoid delays in care during outbreaks |
Not all flu-related illnesses are caused by neglect. But when an outbreak spreads unchecked—or medical symptoms are ignored—the consequences can be severe and legally actionable.
In these cases, what began as a seasonal illness can turn into a widespread failure of care.
Under federal law, nursing home residents have the right to:
Facilities that fail to follow infection control and disease prevention standards may face fines, decertification, or civil liability.
At The Higgins Firm Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers, we conduct thorough investigations into flu-related illness and death in long-term care facilities. Our process may include:
Our goal is simple: determine whether your loved one’s suffering was preventable—and, if so, seek full accountability from those responsible.
If a facility’s failure to prevent or respond to a flu outbreak caused serious injury or death, families may be entitled to compensation for:
Each case is unique. Our attorneys evaluate every detail to pursue justice tailored to your family’s experience.
When tragedy strikes, families nationwide turn to The Higgins Firm for its:
If your loved one was hospitalized or passed away during a flu outbreak in a nursing home, don’t assume it was “just the flu.” It may have been preventable. Our team can help you understand your legal options and seek the answers—and compensation—your family deserves.
Dedicated legal advocates protecting your loved ones nationwide. When nursing homes break their promise of care, our experienced attorneys fight for the justice your family deserves.