North Georgia Programs and Services Long-Term Care Ombudsman

10/08/2026

Your voice matters! Join the Northwest Georgia Area Agency on Aging for an upcoming public hearing and help shape services for older adults in our community.

See the attached flyer for dates, locations, and ways to share your input.

10/08/2026

October is Residents' Rights Month. The theme this year is, "Join Us at the Table."

It's about more than what's on the menu. It's about having a place, having a say, and being recognized as an individual whose preferences, experiences, and choices matter.

Because residents deserve more than a seat at the table.
They deserve a voice in what happens around it.

Throughout October, join us in celebrating the rights, dignity, and individuality of people living in long-term care communities.

💙 Elevating the voices of our elders.

10/01/2026

A person does not stop being themselves when they enter long-term care. They do not leave their identity at the door.
They are still the person who has spent a lifetime making decisions. The person with routines and preferences, relationships and memories, beliefs and opinions. The person who knows how they like their coffee, when they want to go to bed, who they want to visit, what makes them comfortable, and what does not.

They may need assistance. They may need care.

But they are still the author of their own life.

Residents’ rights protect something profoundly human: the ability to continue making choices, to be treated with dignity, to have privacy, to speak up, to participate in decisions, and to be heard.

This October, during Residents’ Rights Month, we’ll be talking about what those rights look like - not just on paper, but in the ordinary moments where dignity and autonomy are either honored or overlooked.

Because a resident should never simply have a seat at someone else’s table.

It is their life. Their home. Their table. Their voice.

And their voice matters.

09/24/2026

🧠 Let’s Talk About Dementia Care!

Join us for the 3rd Annual Meeting of the Minds—an informative and encouraging afternoon for individuals living with dementia, caregivers, families, and community members.

📅 November 12, 2026
🕑 2:00–4:00 p.m.
📍 Second Avenue Baptist Church, Rome

Hear from keynote speaker Nancy Treaster, co-founder of The Caregiver’s Journey®, connect with local resources, and learn ways to support those affected by dementia.

This event is free! Registration is encouraged—see the flyer for details or call Leah Gentry at 706-295-6485, ext. 1255.

Please share with someone who may benefit!

09/24/2026

📢 Your Voice Matters!

Legacy Link will hold its 2026 Public Hearing on November 16th, and we want to hear from you!

Your feedback helps us better understand the needs of our communities and identify ways we can continue to support older adults and individuals with disabilities throughout our region. 💙

In the meantime, please take a few minutes to complete our survey. Your input will help shape the services, resources, and support our communities need most.

📝 You can scan the QR code or use the link below to complete the survey:
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/BCm2hxH41W

Thank you for sharing your voice and helping us build a better future for the people and communities we serve!

09/23/2026

Voting takes a little planning, and now is a good time to start.

For residents of long-term care, exercising the right to vote may sometimes require a few extra steps. Is your registration current? Do you know how you'd like to vote? Will you need assistance? And for facilities: is there a plan in place to help residents who want to participate?

Supporting a resident's right to vote means helping remove barriers while respecting that the choices of whether to vote, how to vote, and who to vote for belong to the resident.

Georgia's Residents' Bill of Rights requires long-term care facilities to permit legally eligible residents to vote and, when requested, to provide assistance with voter registration, absentee ballots, and other legal requirements necessary to vote. Facilities may not interfere with or attempt to influence a resident's vote.

Federal nursing home regulations provide additional protections. Under 42 C.F.R. § 483.10(b), nursing home residents have the right to exercise their rights as residents and as citizens, free from facility interference, coercion, discrimination, or reprisal. CMS reaffirmed these protections in updated guidance issued in July 2026.

A little preparation now can help make sure every resident who wants to vote has the opportunity to make their voice heard.

For official Georgia election information, residents, families, and facilities can use the Georgia Secretary of State's November 3, 2026 General Election resources to check registration, find voting locations, request an absentee ballot, and access other election information.

09/21/2026

October is Residents’ Rights Month!

We’re proud to share Governor Kemp's official proclamation recognizing October 2026 as Long-Term Care Residents’ Rights Month in Georgia. It is a time to celebrate the voices, choices, dignity, and rights of people living in long-term care communities across our state.

This year’s theme, “Join Us at the Table,” is about more than food. It’s about having a seat at the table. Residents should remain at the center of the decisions that shape their lives, with their preferences, experiences, culture, and individuality recognized and respected. Whether the conversation is about care, daily routines, relationships, meals, or what makes a place feel like home, residents deserve more than a seat. They deserve a say.

Throughout October, we’ll be sharing more about residents’ rights, what those rights look like in everyday life, and how all of us can help ensure that the voices of people living in long-term care are heard.

Because wherever a person calls home, their rights still matter.

09/17/2026

Voting Rights Resources

It’s an election year, and as such, the Ombudsman program has received more questions from residents, staff, families, and support people regarding resident voting rights.

The links below provide additional resources and information for residents and staff regarding voting rights.
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Long Term Care Community Coalition's Voting Resources for Long-Term Care Residents: https://nursinghome411.org/learn/voting/

Vote.org's Nonpartisan Georgia Election Tools, Deadlines, Dates, Rules, and Links: https://www.vote.org/georgia/

Vote Riders - Nonpartisan, free one-on-one help to secure an accepted form of ID to vote
https://voteriders.org/

Georgia Board of Elections - Voter registration and election information
https://sos.ga.gov/elections-division-georgia-secretary-states-office
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We share information like this and other useful resources in our quarterly newsletter. Subscribe here: http://eepurl.com/RZZbQvWVnC

Voting rights are a fundamental right for residents in long-term care. According to federal rules for nursing homes, facilities must protect residents’ rights as U.S. citizens and must support residents in the exercise of their rights.

09/16/2026

Voting & Long-Term Care: Assistance vs. Influence

A resident may need help exercising the right to vote, but assistance should support the resident's choices, not replace them.

Georgia law protects an eligible long-term care resident's right to vote and requires facilities to reasonably assist residents, when requested, with things such as voter registration forms, absentee ballot applications and ballots, and other requirements necessary to vote.

But there is an important boundary:
The resident's vote belongs to the resident.

A facility must not interfere with or attempt to influence how a resident casts their vote. Federal resident-rights regulations also protect a resident's ability to exercise their rights as a citizen without interference, coercion, discrimination, or reprisal.

Helping someone participate is not the same as choosing for them.

Whether a resident votes - and the choices that resident makes on the ballot - must remain their own.

O.C.G.A. § 31-8-111
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 111-8-50-.04(a)
42 C.F.R. § 483.10(b)

09/14/2026

🗳️ Did You Know? Your right to vote doesn’t end when you enter long-term care.

Federal nursing home regulations protect residents’ right to exercise their rights as both residents of the facility and as citizens of the United States.

Under 42 C.F.R. § 483.10(b), nursing homes must support residents in exercising those rights without interference, coercion, discrimination, or retaliation. In July 2026, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reaffirmed that these protections include a resident’s right to vote - as well as the right to choose not to participate in an election.

The decision belongs to the resident.

Throughout September, we’ll continue sharing information about voting rights, available assistance, and ways residents of long-term care can make their voices heard.

Because needing care should never mean losing your voice.



https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qssam-26-04-nh-original-release-2026-07-20.pdf