by Alex Lloyd Gross
Call it greed or call it an accounting error, some nursing facilities across the state have been caught pocketing their residents stimulus money. PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro has said this practice is wrong. “They cannot do that,” he said.
When a family member goes into a nursing home, some homes take all of the money in their account, leaving a small token amount for spending money. The problem starts when the stimulus check gets deposited into the residents account. Since nursing facilities will take the social security payments, some have taken the stimulus as well.
Over 200 complaints have been lodged against nursing homes in Pennsylvania, Margaret Barajas said. She is the long term care ombudsman for the state. The government said this money is not income. It is not taxable and it is not included in any contracts someone may have signed to get care. If you have had your loved ones stimulus check taken by a nursing facility, you can go here to file a complaint. A second round of stimulus checks are scheduled to be sent late summer to early fall.