F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
D

Failure to Timely Report Alleged Misappropriation of Resident Funds

Sandstone Of Tucson Rehab CentreTucson, Arizona Survey Completed on 04-03-2026

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to timely report an allegation of misappropriation of a resident’s funds to all mandated entities and within required timeframes. A complaint received by the state agency on February 11, 2026, alleged that a resident was missing a wallet containing $2,000, a bank card, and identification, and that the resident’s son had identified a recurring charge of about $800 per month on the account. The complaint also stated that the facility assisted the family in canceling the bank card. Facility records showed that the incident was initially reported to facility staff on December 16, 2025, indicating a significant delay between the initial report and notification to the state agency. The resident involved was first admitted in September 2024 and re-admitted later with diagnoses including vascular dementia (mild) with psychotic disturbance, delirium due to a known physiological condition, gram‑negative sepsis, and type 2 diabetes mellitus with hyperglycemia and a foot ulcer. An admission MDS with a BIMS score of 03 indicated severe cognitive impairment. Despite the son’s report on December 16, 2025, of unexplained financial charges and concerns about missing funds, review of the resident’s progress notes and the facility’s grievance records from April 2025 to January 2026 revealed no documentation of the missing funds or misappropriation concerns at that time. A late-entry Social Services note dated February 10, 2026, documented that Social Services was notified of concerns regarding a missing wallet and bank card and that an APS intake was completed in accordance with mandatory reporting requirements. A typed Social Services Incident Timeline provided by the facility stated that on December 16, 2025, the resident’s son met with Social Services to report concerns about financial charges, that Social Services contacted the Business Office for clarification, and that the son intended to cancel the card. The report also indicated that an interdisciplinary discussion occurred and that potential financial exploitation would be reported to APS. However, there was no evidence in the clinical record that the state agency or the Administrator were notified of the December 16, 2025 allegation, despite facility policy requiring all allegations or suspicions of abuse, including financial abuse and misappropriation, to be reported immediately to the Administrator and to appropriate state agencies, with a final investigation report submitted within five working days. During interviews, the Administrator and DON acknowledged that staff are expected to report such incidents immediately and that failing to report delays the response and investigation process.

Penalty

Inspection fine: $22,204
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The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.

Resources

Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:

See other F0609 citations
Failure to Report Alleged Misappropriation
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to report an alleged misappropriation of resident funds. A resident with COPD, anxiety, and PTSD reported $1,600 missing and believed another resident took it, but the SSD reportedly said it was too long ago to investigate. The CNO recalled hearing about missing funds from a family member but did not pursue it, and the CEO stated the allegation should have been reported to the State Agency.

No penalty information released
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The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Alleged Sexual Abuse Within Required Timeframe
J
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to report alleged sexual abuse within required timeframe. A resident with intact cognition and significant ADL dependence alleged that a CNA raped them during incontinence care; the resident later described possible penetration and burning, while the CNA said they only provided brief care and applied ointment. The family member contacted law enforcement and requested hospital transfer, but facility leadership did not report the allegation to DOH within 2 hours, stating they believed the allegation had changed to rough handling and did not meet the reporting threshold.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Immediately Report Abuse Allegations and Injury of Unknown Origin
E
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Immediately Report Abuse Allegations and Injury of Unknown Origin: Staff did not immediately report two resident-to-resident sexual abuse incidents involving one resident touching two others, and staff also did not immediately report bruising of unknown origin on another resident. A CNA redirected the resident during the abuse incidents but did not notify the charge nurse, DON, or Administrator, and an RN and LPN did not escalate the bruising after assessing it and hearing it described as handprint-like. The delayed reporting prevented timely initiation of the abuse investigation process and resident assessment.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Alleged Physical Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Report Alleged Physical Abuse: A resident alleged that two CNAs were rough while repositioning them in bed and that the resident’s head was bumped into the headboard, causing pain. One CNA confirmed the head bump occurred during care, and the administrator stated the abuse allegation and failure to report were substantiated because the staff did not report the incident immediately.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Timely Report Allegation of Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Timely Report Allegation of Abuse: A nurse witnessed one resident touch another resident inappropriately, but the incident was not reported within the required timeframe. The LPN separated the residents and addressed boundaries with the resident involved, but did not report the event because she believed the RN would notify the DON. The DON and Administrator later stated the incident had not been reported immediately as required.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Immediately Report Verbal Abuse Allegation
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Immediately Report Verbal Abuse Allegation: A CNA was heard using foul and disrespectful language toward a cognitively impaired resident during care, but the allegation was not reported immediately to the DON/Administrator. The witness delayed reporting for several hours, and the DON, ADON, and Administrator confirmed the report was not made until later that morning. The resident had severe cognitive impairment, was dependent on staff for care, and received nutrition via GT.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
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