Record contained sufficient evidence to support $6,050 per day penalty imposed on petitioner-skilled nursing facility by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on grounds that petitioner had failed to protect its residents from abuse, failed to timely report or investigate thoroughly allegations of abuse made by residents, and failed to implement its internal policies on abuse, neglect and misappropriation of property. Record showed that: (1) one resident accused staff member of kissing him; (2) one resident accused staff member of verbally abusing him during showering incident and shoving him on his bed; and (3) family of one resident reported that resident’s rings were missing. Dept. could properly find that said incidents, all of which had not been timely reported to authorities, placed residents in “immediate jeopardy,” where shower incident was corroborated by other staff and kissing incident could have fallen within type of mental abuse prohibited under section 483.13(c)(1)(i). Too, alleged theft of rings incident could warrant “immediate jeopardy” determination, where record showed that petitioner had systemic problem with investigating and reporting resident complaints, which placed said residents in jeopardy of further harm. Ct. also rejected petitioner’s claim that penalties were inappropriate because Dept.’s investigation was inadequate.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Medicare