November 2, 2017
Fresno Nursing Home Sued for Dumping Resident on Sidewalk of Uninhabitable House
For more information contact:
Pat McGinnis, Executive Director, CANHR
(415) 974-5171 patm@canhr.org.org
Anthony Chicotel, Staff Attorney, CANHR
(415) 974-5171 tony@canhr.org
Jody C. Moore, JOHNSON MOORE Trial Attorneys
(805) 988-3661
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Fresno – Manning Gardens Care Center, a nursing home in Fresno, was sued this week for illegally dumping a 78-year-old resident at her former home, where she had been previously found soiled in vomit and feces, with cockroaches crawling on her and maggots in her wounds. After a brief hospitalization, the resident was transferred to Manning Gardens with Medi-Cal paying for most of her care. When she was unable to access her income to pay her Medi-Cal share of cost, the facility issued a discharge notice and facility arranged a transport van to take her to her former home. The facility had made no arrangements to ensure the resident would have appropriate care at home, despite her unhealed wounds and extensive care needs.The resident’s son was unable to care for his mother in the home, and refused to allow her into the house. The transport driver called the facility and the facility administrator and assistant administrator then drove to the house, met the resident on the sidewalk and engaged in a dispute over the unpaid charges. The resident fell ill under the stress and 911 was called. The administrator then left the resident on the sidewalk after the police and fire departments arrived. The emergency responders found the house unfit to live in.Attorney Jody Moore of the law firm Johnson Moore, the attorneys who filed the case stated “a facility must never discharge a resident into an unsafe and unfit environment. Here, it is clear the facility administrator, who is also an owner, was more concerned about his bottom line than the safety and welfare of this resident. It’s unconscionable.”“Illegal and unsafe discharges are at an all-time high in California and this case demonstrates how uncaring and derelict some nursing homes are,” explained Pat McGinnis, Executive Director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. “There are state and federal laws meant to ensure residents receive well-planned, safe discharges but enforcement is weak and compliance is evaporating.”The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) found that Manning Gardens had jeopardized the resident’s health and safety and issued a Class A citation and $20,000 fine. The citation stated that Manning Gardens’ assistant administrator was unaware of any regulatory requirement for safe resident discharges.The CDPH found that Manning Gardens also dumped at least two other residents into unsafe living arrangements when it became clear they were not making timely payments. “Three citations by the Department of Public Health indicate a pattern, that Manning Gardens has no interest in following the rules regarding safe discharge,” explained Ms. Moore. “Part of the lawsuit seeks an injunction, which is a court order requiring them to comply with the rules to protect future residents from being dumped.”
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About CANHR: California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR), is a statewide nonprofitadvocacy organization dedicated to improving the choices, care and quality of life for California’s long term care consumers. Through direct advocacy, community education, legislation and litigation it has been CANHR’s goal to educate and support long term care consumers and advocates regarding the rights and remedies under the law, and to create a united voice for long term care reform and humane alternatives to institutionalization.
California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR)
650 Harrison Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94107
www.canhr.org