Home / Crime and Justice / Iowa Nursing Home Fined for Stolen Resident Gift Cards
Iowa Nursing Home Fined for Stolen Resident Gift Cards
20 Dec
Summary
- A facility was fined $500 for fraudulent spending of resident gift cards.
- Inspectors found gift cards unsecured in an unlocked office cabinet.
- Other Iowa care facilities faced fines for neglect and improper restraints.
A nursing home in Iowa received a $500 fine from the state Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing due to the fraudulent spending of resident gift cards. State inspectors found that a Walmart gift card belonging to a resident at REM Iowa's Cedar Rapids facility was spent without authorization. Additionally, several McDonald's gift cards from another resident were also fraudulently used.
These incidents occurred because the facility's program supervisor failed to keep the resident gift cards secured. The cards were stored in an unlocked cabinet within an unlocked office, a departure from previous locked storage practices. This lapse led to the citation for failing to report allegations of exploitation in a timely manner.
This penalty is one of several recent fines issued by the department to Iowa care facilities. Other facilities fined $500 include REM Iowa-Birch Cottage for neglect leading to a resident's death, Stratford Specialty Care for improper use of physical restraints, and Sunrise Hill Care Center for delayed employee background checks.
