If you have a loved one in a Missouri nursing home or are looking for a Missouri nursing home you may have heard the name Reliant Care Group or Reliant Care Management Company which owns and/or manages twenty skilled nursing facilities (i.e. nursing homes) throughout Missouri and a few Assisted Living facilities as well.  Of their twenty skilled nursing home facilities, a quick review on the Nursing Home Compare feature of Medicare.gov reveals that half of those facilities are rated by Medicare as Below Average or Much Below Average.  One of the first media outlets to report this settlement was the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

U.S. Government Alleges That Reliant Caused False Claims To Be Submitted

The U.S. Government claimed that the Reliant companies caused the various skilled nursing home facilities to submit false claims for medically unnecessary rehabilitation therapy between January 1, 2008 and April 30, 2014.  Each of these allegedly false claims would have been reimbursed under Medicare part A.  The government also claimed that there were false claims caused by the Reliant companies that were to be paid by Medicare part B from January 1, 2009 through June 30, 2014.  Each of these allegedly false claims involve rehabilitation therapy that were unnecessary.

Reliant Agrees To Pay $8,368,878 To Settle Government Claim

According to the US Department of Justice, Reliant and various affiliate entities agreed to a substantial settlement of the claims against it.  The details about the settlement are on the DOJ website.  As part of the settlement, Reliant and its affiliated entities entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the US Government that sets out strict requirements for when Reliant is to pay the various installments of its settlement.  If Reliant fails to pay any amount any amount identified in the settlement agreement, it will be considered in default.  Here is a copy of the Corporate Integrity Agreement.

Greed In The Nursing Home Industry

Trial lawyers tend to be a favorite target of many politicians these days.  How many times do we hear about so-called “greedy trial lawyers” and “jackpot justice” and “getting the trial lawyers hands out of Missouri’s businesses”.  All of that is good, red meat political talk for a stump speech, but not only is it mostly untrue, it ignores and excuses the many ways the nursing home industry puts profit before providing quality care.  Sadly, in the end, real people are hurt and some die as a result of poor care by poorly trained people.

The Terry Law Firm represents those whose family members have been seriously injured or died as a result of nursing home abuse and neglect.  If you or a loved one have been the victim of a Missouri nursing home, feel free to call our office at (314) 878-9797 and talk with an attorney.