Attorney General Letitia James’s (AG James’) office has secured a settlement of $8.6 million with Fulton Commons, a licensed Long Island nursing home accused of resident mistreatment and neglect as well as financial fraud. The care center is marketed as offering “premium healthcare services provided by highly skilled and trained personnel with years of experience”. However, investigations revealed that the owners engaged in repeated instances of Medicare and Medicaid fraud to divert millions of dollars, depriving the vulnerable nursing home residents of critical care, safety, and dignity.
Case Background: What Did Fulton Commons Care Center Do?
In December 2022, AG James’ office filed a lawsuit against the nursing facility and its owners, operator, former administrator, former controller, and other related entities for resident abuse and financial fraud. According to the lawsuit, Fulton Commons was insufficiently staffed and allowed residents to live in despicable and unhygienic conditions. Many residents underwent physical, emotional, and even sexual abuse; yet, no measure was taken to report any such allegations. Residents had no assistance with daily tasks, and were not only left to sit in soiled clothes for hours, but also humiliated when they asked for help. They were also denied basic dental or bodily hygiene, and were not properly given medications of the right dosages on time. Thus, many residents got severely injured or diseased, and some even died as a result.
Instead of providing bare minimum care, Fulton Commons owners engaged in financial fraud by making equity withdrawals and transfers from the care center and filing false financial documents during 2018-2022. One of their schemes involved paying themselves $14.9 million in inflated rental payments using Medicare and Medicaid funds. Owner Moshe Kalter also paid fraudulent salaries to his adult children for no-show jobs as patient care providers. The nursing home also created poor working conditions for the staff who were regularly overworked and underpaid, often without adequate supervision or training.
What is the Consequence of the Settlement With AG James’ Office?
As a consequence of the $8.6 million settlement, Fulton Commons is now required to undergo a series of reforms to ensure that it complies with the applicable New York state and federal laws. The facility must hire an independent healthcare monitor to oversee all healthcare operations, including proper and dignified care of its residents. A new independent financial monitor is mandated to be put in place to oversee finances and ensure the facility properly utilizes the Medicaid and Medicare funds, while ensuring no withdrawals or distributions are taken by the owners without an approval process. Fulton Commons must also appoint a chief compliance officer to ensure compliance with reforms and payment of specified penalty amounts.
In addition to the above, AG James’ office has also initiated a criminal investigation in November 2022 in response to allegations of sexual assault against a licensed practical nurse, who has since passed away.
The penalties and mandatory reforms are hopefully significant steps toward equity and accountability in nursing homes across the country, where resident neglect, financial fraud, and misconduct have sadly become commonplace.
Contact a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer to Discuss Your Case
We are a top-rated nursing home abuse law firm dedicated to helping nursing home residents and their families get compensated for injuries suffered due to abuse and neglect at such facilities. If you or your loved one has faced elder abuse and mistreatment at a New York facility, please feel free to contact us today for help.
