Author: Dave Abels

On April 10th, a 45-year-old medical supply company owner who allegedly posed as a doctor or other clinician at 20 Long Island nursing homes was sentenced to 12 years in prison for Medicare fraud. A U.S. District Judge also ordered Helene Michel of Old Brookville, New York to forfeit $1.3 million of the reportedly $10.7 million she purportedly acquired through Medicare fraud. The woman was convicted of medical ID theft, wrongful disclosure of nursing home patient information that was protected by HIPAA, and conspiracy to commit Medicare fraud in August 2012.

According to federal prosecutors, Michel stole patient information from paper records maintained by the nursing homes and used the data to submit fraudulent Medicare bills on behalf of her company, Medical Solutions Management, between 2003 and 2007. Michel allegedly posed as a healthcare professional using a number of aliases in order to gain access to skilled nursing facility resident information. A statement issued by the United States Department of Justice claims Michel then used the information to seek financial compensation for equipment and services that were never provided by her medical supply company. The woman is also accused of submitting supplemental patient information when certain claims were denied.

The alleged fraud was reportedly discovered after a patient’s family noticed a number of services on her explanation of benefits summary that were never received. A co-owner of Medical Solutions Management is purportedly now wanted by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General. Although the records supposedly stolen by Michel were in paper format, two nursing facility workers in Florida were accused of stealing electronic patient information this month.

When most people enter a skilled nursing facility, becoming the victim of identity theft is the last thing on their mind. Still, it happens at alarming rates in Illinois and across the nation. This risk of fraud may be high at a number of long-term care facilities as most nursing homes operating in the State of Illinois receive Medicare and Medicaid funds. Because many long-term care facility residents have a difficult time advocating on their own behalf, loved ones must vigilantly protect the personal information of their senior relatives. If you believe your elderly or disabled family member was the victim of identity or other theft while residing at a skilled nursing home in Illinois, you should discuss your concerns with a quality attorney.
Continue reading “Medicare Fraud Conviction Demonstrates Risk for ID and Other Theft in Illinois Nursing Homes”

A study recently published in JAMA Internal Medicine claims antibiotics are generally overused in nursing homes in Canada and elsewhere. As part of the study, researchers reportedly analyzed prescription antibiotic use data collected in 2010 for nearly 67,000 seniors over age 66 at 630 skilled nursing and other long-term care facilities in Ontario. The study authors stated although most bacterial infections may be successfully treated with a course of antibiotics that lasts one week or less, nearly half of all such prescriptions provided to the elderly nursing home residents examined exceeded seven days. In addition, about one-fifth of doctors allegedly prescribed a longer course of antibiotic treatment than expected based upon the severity and type of a resident’s bacterial infection.

Researchers reportedly believe that antibiotic prescribing patterns in the long-term care facilities analyzed were based on physician preferences rather than patient symptoms and the extent of infection. The study authors expressed concern that the rate of antibiotics overuse in nursing homes may contribute to future drug resistance. According to researchers, antibiotic stewardship measures should be implemented at long-term care facilities in order to reduce costs, potential complications, and drug resistance.

Unfortunately, nursing facility residents are reportedly often over-medicated. Although receiving too many antibiotics may seem harmless, it can spell disaster for long-term care patients. Nursing home residents normally live in close proximity to one another. This means dangerous antibiotic-resistant and other bacteria can spread easily in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

Nursing home employees must diligently use effective sanitation measures in order to maintain the health of facility patients. In Illinois, nursing home workers are required by law to ensure that simple precautionary measures designed to control the spread of communicable diseases and other illness are used. Regrettably, too many direct care workers reportedly fail to follow simple procedures that are necessary to protect the health of residents. This can have a tragic impact on skilled nursing facility patients. If your elderly loved one died after he or she contracted a preventable disease at a nursing home located in Illinois, you should contact an experienced nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer.
Continue reading “Study Claims Antibiotics are Dangerously Overprescribed to Nursing Home Residents in Illinois and Elsewhere”

An outbreak of a respiratory illness that led to pneumonia occurred in a Connecticut nursing home and claimed four lives before it was controlled. Now that nursing home has been fined $2,000 in connection with the handling of the outbreak after the Connecticut Department of Public Health determined errors occurred.

The Durham nursing home had 10 percent of its residents contract pneumonia by April 15 but did not report the condition as an outbreak until nine days later on April 24. The disease continued to spread until 20 percent of the residents and three staff members were ill by April 30. Of the residents who became ill, four eventually died in late April at the nursing home or at area hospitals. Reports indicate that all four had underlying problems at the time of their deaths but that their deaths were due to pneumonia.

The nursing home reportedly addressed the outbreak internally on April 24. At that time, employees were instructed to perform extra cleanings in the common areas and they were given instructions on how to limit the spread of the disease. Though the training was provided, the Department of Public Health has alleged that appropriate measures were not practiced and therefore the pneumonia continued to risk the health of residents. According to the citation, the employees did not quarantine those who were already sick and that staff did not wear masks while caring for the ill.

The elderly, together with young children and those with underlying health conditions, are at the greatest risk for contracting pneumonia and also the greatest risk of dying from the disease. This is one of the reasons that the pneumoccocal polysaccharide vaccine is recommended for all Americans over age 65. Though there is a vaccine for pneumonia, it is important to remember that the vaccine is only effective against 23 strains of bacterial pneumonia and that it is effective for only 60-80 percent of adults who receive it. This means that even if an elderly nursing home patient receives the vaccination, there is still a great need to exercise caution around anyone sick with pneumonia. In this case, the employees reportedly failed to take the necessary steps to prevent the spread of the disease and as a result more vulnerable residents became ill. Four of them were too ill to recover.
Continue reading “Nursing Home Fined After 4 Die from Pneumonia”

The Virginia Beach Police Department has announced that a local assisted-living facility will be the first in the area to use new technology in an effort to keep track of residents who may be at risk for going missing. Kings Grant House has reportedly partnered with the non-profit Project Lifesaver program to automatically enroll about 20 residents in a six-month tracking bracelet pilot program. A transmitter on each bracelet purportedly allows local police to track missing elderly residents using a fixed radio signal.

According to the program’s coordinator, Officer Allen Perry, Virginia Beach police have successfully used transmitter technology to search for at least 100 missing individuals who voluntarily sought out the device since 2005. Now, the 20 assisted living facility residents who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, Autism, and dementia disorders will reportedly have another tool to ensure their safety. Although the city normally charges a monthly fee for a transmitter, no one will be charged during the pilot program. In addition, a local non-profit organization normally pays the monthly fee for community members who cannot afford it. Officer Perry stated almost 300 community members including the Kings Grant House residents are now enrolled in the Virginia Beach Project Lifesaver program.

According to Marj Pantone, Kings Grant House Administrator, the families of residents who will take part in the program have been supportive of using the new technology. Still, Pantone said nothing is foolproof and the facility will maintain its security personnel as well.

As beloved relatives age or become disabled, many Illinois families turn to long-term care facilities for help. Even the most dedicated family member will have a difficult time providing around the clock care for an unpredictable Alzheimer’s or dementia patient. At all times, skilled nursing facilities in Illinois are required to have enough direct care staff on hand to ensure your loved one is safe and accounted for. When an Illinois nursing home fails to ensure that patients who are at-risk of becoming lost are safe, the institution may be guilty of negligence. If your loved one was hurt or died as a result of skilled nursing facility negligence, you should contact an experienced Illinois nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer immediately.
Continue reading “Transmitter Bracelets May Help Illinois Police Find Missing Nursing Home Residents in the Future”

A former director of a nursing home in New York has been arrested and charged with falsifying documents related to a missing resident, according to the New York attorney general’s office. The criminal complaint alleges that a 74-year-old man went missing from the nursing home that the former director ran on May 26, 2013. The resident suffers from dementia and high blood pressure and has not been seen since his disappearance.

When the director realized the resident was missing, she failed to call 911 or even police to report the information. Instead she allegedly removed notes from the man’s medical records and told employees not to call the police. The woman also instructed an employee to document that the resident left the facility voluntarily and against medical advice and that on May 29, she verbally told an inspector from the attorney general’s office that the resident left on his own.

The resident was finally reported missing by the facility on May 30 and he has not yet been found but authorities are very concerned due to his impaired mental state and need for medical attention. The former director now faces charges including endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, falsifying business records, and willful violation of the health laws. If convicted on all counts, the woman will face up to four years in prison.

Residents of nursing homes are some of the most vulnerable members of our society and they deserve the utmost care and concern. Yet the director of the nursing home involved in this incident allegedly refused to admit that an error occurred and instead took active steps to conceal the incident. Instead of reporting the man missing immediately, the man was not reported for four days, making any attempt to locate him more difficult and placing his health and safety in significant danger.

Many residents of nursing homes suffer from mental impairments like dementia or Alzheimer’s disease that cause them to be confused about where they are or where they should be. Some of these individuals may attempt to wander away from the home if they fail to recognize the nursing home or its employees or if they attempt to return to a previous home, like a house in a neighborhood they lived in for much of their lives. Employees and directors of nursing homes are charged with keeping their residents safe, and this includes preventing the residents who are unable to care for themselves from wandering away or leaving the home. Failing to do this is negligent and can make a nursing home, its employees, and its owners liable for injuries or even death that occur to the resident.
Continue reading “Former Nursing Home Director Arrested for Falsifying Documents regarding Missing Resident”

Two nurses who worked for a New York nursing home have been charged with falsifying documents when faced with a health inspection. Though this particular incident happened in New York, it is similar to those that occur in Illinois and it highlights the priorities that are placed upon some nursing home employees – to cover up for the nursing home even if it means endangering the safety of its residents.

The incident in New York began in March, 2011 when the New York State Health Department made a surprise visit to a nursing home facility. The health department was there to inspect the facility and to make sure that it was running in accordance with the applicable guidelines and codes. However when inspectors arrived, the director of nursing for the home reportedly called a meeting and encouraged another nurse to help her fill in blank forms, indicating that patients had received prescribed medication already when in fact none had been given.

Some time after the inspection, a complaint was filed with the attorney general’s office, alleging the fraudulently filled out forms and the improper handling of patient medication. The attorney general began a review and investigation which culminated in charges leveled against the director of nursing as well as a nurse manager. The two women no longer work for the nursing home and have since claimed that they falsified the documents to protect the home and to prevent it from getting into trouble with the state.

As a result of the falsified documents, officials cannot determine if residents ever received their medication or if it was withheld from them. This has been troubling to the families of the residents, especially those who were on sensitive medication that needed to be administered at precise times and intervals. If these residents did not receive the proper dosage, it is likely that their health suffered to some degree. Those particularly at risk of medication errors include residents on anti-convulsants, or medications that treat and control seizures and other tremors, as well as patients on blood thinners and chemotherapy. In addition, any patient who was taking pain medication likely suffered in pain if they were not provided with the drugs they needed to keep them comfortable.
Continue reading “Nurses Charged for Falsifying Documents in Nursing Home”