State takes action after I-Team investigation exposes nursing homes not paying workers
BOSTON - The state is taking action after an I-Team investigation exposed nursing homes that are not paying workers.
The door was locked, and the lights were off at Blupoint Healthcare's Newton offices on Monday. The woman inside told the I-Team to go away.
On Friday, a judge ordered Blupoint's three long-term care facilities into receivership. The Massachusetts Attorney General filed the emergency request to put another company in charge of the homes, telling the court the health and safety of the residents was in jeopardy.
"When new information revealed the possibility of dangerous understaffing and poor quality of care, my office and the Department of Public Health promptly filed an emergency petition and secured a temporary receiver," Attorney General Andrea Campbell said in a statement. "Receivership will help stabilize the situation by taking control of finances and supporting daily operations, while protecting the welfare of residents and staff."
Employees said paychecks bounced
The I-Team first reported on Blupoint not paying its workers and vendors weeks ago. One employee said paychecks bounced and the company kept promising to pay. "It's just been a lot of excuses," the employee told the I-Team. "On July 3 we got a text saying on the fifth the owner would be coming in to sign new checks. They said that he isn't local so that's why it's taking longer."
But those payments did not go through either.
The Department of Public Health said residents in the Blupoint owned homes are nearly all on MassHealth. The I-Team now learning, MassHealth advanced the company more than $2 million last fall.
Court records show, DPH knew as early as March that Blupoint was not paying its employees nor its vendors. Since then, dozens of staff members quit and others working without pay were using their own money to buy supplies for residents.
After the I-Team's report, families of residents at Pioneer Valley requested transfers of their loved ones to other homes.
Rapid Response teams sent to facilities
Last week the state said it sent in Rapid Response teams to support the facilities and called for volunteers from Medical Reserve Corps units to help take care of residents.
Lauren Foster, a certified nurse's assistant at Blackstone Valley said, "they are family to us I'm sure the crisis team is amazing, but they don't know their likes and dislikes and how they like things done at a certain time and their preferences on food and all that kind of stuff."
A spokesperson from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services said in a statement:
"The priority for the Healey-Driscoll administration is to ensure that safe, high-quality care is provided for all nursing home residents. DPH remains actively engaged in this matter, conducting daily calls with facility staff as well as ownership of the facilities, and providing staff and other supports at the facilities. As staffing constraints grow, DPH is now engaging the Medical Reserve Corps and looking for additional volunteers to continue to provide safe, high-quality care for residents at these facilities. We are in daily communication with Blupoint Healthcare and nursing home staff and will continue to provide assistance and monitor the situation."
