Misappropriation of Resident Funds by Business Office Manager
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to protect residents from the misappropriation of their property, specifically resident funds, as evidenced by unauthorized withdrawals and transfers between resident accounts. The Business Office Manager (BOM) was responsible for managing the Resident Funds Management System (RFMS), which maintained individual accounts for each resident. An incident was discovered when the Administrator identified discrepancies in the resident trust account, prompting an internal investigation. The investigation revealed that the BOM had made unauthorized withdrawals from the accounts of seven residents and transferred these funds into the accounts of other residents without proper authorization or documentation. Audit records showed multiple instances where funds were withdrawn from specific residents and deposited into other residents' accounts, with amounts and batch numbers detailed in the audit sheet. Additionally, the audit of the RFMS Petty Cash fund indicated 100 transactions from February 2023 through September 2025 that lacked verification tickets or resident/resident representative signatures, all completed by the BOM. The Administrator and Regional Field Controller confirmed that the BOM had accepted cash payments from residents or their representatives but failed to deposit the cash into the trust account, instead covering the missing funds by moving money from other resident accounts. During interviews, the BOM admitted to taking resident money but did not provide full details or documentation regarding the missing funds. The Administrator and Regional Field Controller verified that the misappropriation occurred over an extended period, with the BOM manipulating accounts to conceal the missing funds. The facility's policy on abuse prevention, which prohibits misappropriation of resident property, was not followed in these instances, resulting in the substantiated deficiency.