NINE OUT OF 10 nursing homes don't have enough workers to properly care for patients, a new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says. Those living in homes with poor staff-patient ratios are more likely to suffer from all sorts of ailments, ranging from bedsores to pneumonia.

The Bush administration, which has already advocated a free-market approach to the problems in nursing homes, says that short-staffing is best addressed through the more efficient use of existing workers.