Failure to Timely Refund Resident Deposit After Discharge
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to provide a timely refund of a deposit to a resident's Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) following the resident's discharge. The resident, who initially paid privately for care, was discharged to another skilled nursing facility and was owed a refund of approximately $1,700. Despite the DPOA's repeated contact with the facility's Business Office Manager (BOM) after discharge, the refund was not issued within the required 30 days. The BOM stated that the delay was due to pending insurance claims, which were resolved several months after discharge, and a subsequent error in the mailing address that resulted in the refund check being returned. The BOM acknowledged that she had not requested a new refund check with the corrected address due to an oversight. Interviews with the Director of Office Services and the Administrator confirmed that facility policy required refunds to be provided within 30 days of discharge and after all insurance payments were received. The Director of Office Services was not aware of the returned check until months later and had not received updated address information to reissue the refund. The Administrator confirmed that the resident or their representative should have received the refund according to regulation, but this did not occur due to the facility's failure to follow up and correct the mailing issue.