Donna Giron wheels through the halls of the nursing home she's lived in since May. Finding an affordable home of her own has been difficult. Sarah Jane Tribble/WCPN hide caption

Marian Grunwald (from left), Earl Elfstrom and Verna Matheson bounced a balloon back and forth with nursing assistant Rick Pavlisich on Dec. 13, 2013, at an Ecumen nursing home in Chisago City, Minn. Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune, Minneapolis St. Paul hide caption

NPR's analysis of government data found that harsh penalties are almost never used when nursing home residents get unnecessary drugs of any kind. Owen Franken/Corbis hide caption

Antipsychotic drugs aren't necessary in the vast majority of dementia cases, gerontologists say. The pills can be stupefying and greatly raise the risk of falls — and hip fracture. iStockphoto hide caption

Federal prosecutors allege two nursing homes in California have "persistently and severely overmedicated elderly and vulnerable residents." Antipsychotic drugs like risperidone, also known as Risperdal, can be dangerous for elderly people, but are frequently prescribed to nursing home patients. JB Reed/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Most older adults are overweight or obese, which increases the risk of chronic health problems. Claudio Arnese/iStockphoto hide caption

Failures in ordinary care are causing widespread harm that's sometimes serious, inspectors say. iStockphoto hide caption

Smoke rises from the burned remains of a retirement home in L'Isle-Verte on Friday. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

A firefighter walks past the Residence du Havre after the fire in L'Isle Verte, Quebec. At least three people died in the blaze at the seniors' home. Early reports were that another 30 people were missing. Mathieu Belanger /Reuters/Landov hide caption

Dorothy Holmes, back home with her new dog, Jack. Martha Bebinger/WBUR hide caption

Zach Sayne at age 5, with his mother Nola. Courtesy of Nola Sayne hide caption

HHS found that 19 percent of nurse aides who'd been disciplined had a prior conviction that would have shown up on a background check. Matt Rourke/AP hide caption

The agreements offered by many nursing homes can result in higher fees and smaller awards in the case of a dispute. iStockphoto.com hide caption