Sunday, August 2, 2026

AG Nessel Files Lawsuit Against Nursing Home Operator for Violating Medicaid False Claim Act, Failure of Care of Residents

LANSING – Today, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced a civil cause of action (PDF) filed against Fahim Uddin, Pioneer Health Care Management doing business as Legacy Healthcare Management, and nine nursing home facilities located throughout southeast Michigan for violations of the Michigan Medicaid False Claim Act. The complaint alleges Uddin and his companies accepted more than $111 million in Medicaid reimbursement while failing to maintain staffing levels necessary to provide the services for which they billed. The Attorney General contends that this intentional failure of care placed hundreds of nursing home patients at risk of harm while Uddin operated related companies to enrich himself.

“While our case is focused on staffing data, there is a real human cost to the defendants' choices and their failure of care,” said Attorney General Nessel. “The consequences of chronic understaffing placed vulnerable residents at unnecessary risk of harm, violated their rights, and resulted in numerous injuries. I would like to thank the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General for their valuable assistance in this matter. My office remains committed to doing all we can to hold long-term care facilities accountable to ensure residents receive the high-quality care they deserve.”

"The complaint highlights two critical barriers to ensuring quality of care and life for nursing home residents: understaffing and related party transactions,” said Alison Hirschel, director of the Michigan Elder Justice Initiative. “We’re grateful to the Attorney General for seeking to hold nursing homes accountable.”

The civil complaint follows a 2-year investigation that began in October 2024 into chronic, severe understaffing at nine Michigan facilities owned and operated by Uddin:

  • Ashley Healthcare Center and Riverside Healthcare Center in Gratiot County;
  • Heritage Manor Nursing & Rehab Center, Northville Manor, and Pine Creek Manor Skilled Nursing & Rehab Center in Wayne County;
  • Lakeside Manor Nursing & Rehabilitation Center and Regency Manor Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Macomb County; and
  • Oakland Manor and Oakridge Manor Nursing & Rehab Center in Oakland County.

Under the Michigan Medicaid False Claim Act, failure of care occurs when a nursing home, or nursing home owner and operator, knowingly provides care which is so substandard that it fails to meet the minimally required standards for Medicaid reimbursement, despite submitting claims that indicate otherwise. Attorney General Nessel alleges in the complaint that across the nine facilities, licensed for 508 beds and housing an average of 394 residents, the defendants failed to meet their minimal staffing requirements based on the acuity needs of their residents approximately 96% of the time.

Michigan law requires per-shift minimum ratios to ensure care and services are not concentrated in a single period. It is alleged that the defendants failed to meet these shift ratios on at least 496 instances. Michigan law also requires a nursing home to provide staff sufficient to provide not less than 2.25 hours of nursing care per resident, per day. It is further alleged that the defendants operated below the per resident, per day threshold on 1,454 occasions – higher than any other nursing home chain with four or more facilities in Michigan during this period. On at least 4,658 occasions, the defendants also allegedly failed to staff a registered nurse for at least eight consecutive hours a day, seven days a week, as required by federal law.

Between 2020 and 2025, the defendants billed Medicaid a total of $111,216,862. The Attorney General contends the defendants submitted claims for services that were not provided in accordance with Medicaid requirements and is seeking the full amount received by the defendants as a result of their alleged wrongful conduct – plus triple that amount, as well as a penalty of $5,000-$10,000 for each violation.

This matter is being handled by the Department of Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division (HCFD), with the assistance of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. The HCFD is the federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for Michigan, and it receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $5,517,524.00 for the fiscal year 2026. The remaining 25% percent, totaling $1,839,170.00, is funded by the State of Michigan. 

Source:
AG Nessel Files Lawsuit Against Nursing Home Operator for Violating Medicaid False Claim Act, Failure of Care of Residents

Nursing Home Operator Sweetwater to Pay State $15M for Staffing Failures

By Amy Stulick 


California-based nursing home operator Sweetwater Care Resource and its affiliates must pay $15 million after failing to adequately staff its nursing homes.

About $12.5 million includes penalties and $2.5 million will go toward improving staffing and employing a compliance monitor for three years, according to a settlement filed by the state attorney general’s office.

The deal affects 22 of the original 27 defendants named in the lawsuit. Limited liability companies Sweetwater Care OPCO, AJC Healthcare and JBG Partners were dismissed from legal action, as well as James Gamett, managing partner of Sweetwater Private Equity, and Aaron Chesley, named as co-founder of Sweetwater Care in Carlsbad, according to a report from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

The remaining 22 limited liability companies are subject to the settlement’s stipulations.

Christopher Cherney of Skilled Review Consulting will serve as Sweetwater’s compliance monitor, with real-time access to facility electronic records. Quarterly announced and unannounced site visits or “desk audits” of operations are also required as part of the settlement, according to the Union-Tribune.

State investigators found more than 14,000 instances of inadequate staffing among Sweetwater nursing homes between 2021 and 2024, according to a case filed more than a year ago.

The inadequate staffing of Sweetwater’s 17 facilities, mostly located in rural areas, led to delayed care and patient harm, according to the case. Residents were exposed to preventable neglect, abuse and injuries including fractured bones that went days without assessment or medical care, according to the state.

Each facility must document resident bed repositioning to prevent skin breakdowns, full body checks, bathing, fluid intake to prevent dehydration, dental evaluations and all reports of suspected resident abuse, as part of the settlement.

Quarterly reports are also required for the following quality measures: falls with major injuries, pressure ulcers, UTIs, catheter use, decline in ability to perform activities of daily living, antipsychotic medication use, decline in mobility, and hospitalizations and ED visits per 1,000 days of care provided.

“This settlement is a step in the right direction for Sweetwater Care and it underscores the California Department of Justice’s commitment to standing against any form of Medi-Cal fraud or elder abuse,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement. “We will continue to hold accountable those who put profits over patients.”

Nursing homes in the state must provide a minimum of 3.5 direct care service hours per resident day from nurses and certified nurse aides (CNAs), 2.4 of which must be CNAs.

Full Article & Source:
Nursing Home Operator Sweetwater to Pay State $15M for Staffing Failures