The First Domino

False Staffing Numbers

The first domino has fallen in a fraudulent scheme to defraud taxpayers. Nursing homes provided false staffing numbers to meet safe staffing standards as required. In September, investigators searched Mount Lebanon Rehabilitation and Wellness Center and Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center. Now, the former administrator was indicted. She is accused of scheming to falsely inflate staffing records. The indictment is part of an ongoing state and federal investigation into criminal activities by Comprehensive Healthcare Management  Services LLC.

“These criminal charges represent the first step in holding accountable those who put profit over the health and safety of seniors,” said U.S. Attorney Scott Brady.

The grand jury indicted Susan Gilbert on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, health care fraud and obstruction of a federal audit. Prosecutors claim that management inflated nursing hours. Management directed caregivers to falsify time sheets. Gilbert directed staff members to keep two separate sets of books — one with actual, inadequate staffing levels and one to show the federal government. Happens all the time.

“These crimes put facility residents at risk by only providing a dangerously low amount of nursing staff just before COVID began to surge across the country,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said.

In a separate lawsuit, former residents and family members sued Comprehensive Health Care Services.  The lawsuit accuses the leadership team of “reckless” handling of Covid-19. However, the lawsuit also complains of understaffing and infection control problems prior to the pandemic.

I hope she flips on the corporate people who made her falsify the records. This happens far too often in the industry.