Lawsuit: Raleigh-area nursing home allegedly drugged patients to make them easier to manage

Feb. 05--A lawsuit unsealed in federal court in Memphis alleges that a Raleigh-area nursing home gave heavy anti-psychotic drugs to residents to keep them "docile."

The complaint alleged Medicaid and Medicare fraud by Spring Gate Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center, and argued that the company provided "worthless" services to residents between 2012 and 2015. Now the company will pay a $500,000 settlement, and has entered into an agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services to prevent such conduct in the future, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

According to the lawsuit, Spring Gate, operated by Memphis Operator, LLC, prescribed a resident heavy doses of anti-psychotic and anti-anxiety drugs in 2013 "despite the fact that there was never a medically accepted indication justifying such heavy-duty medications."

"After Spring Gate prescribed these psychoactive drugs, (her) condition quickly deteriorated," according to the complaint. "Spring Gate internal reports described her as confused and unsteady, prone to staring off into space. She fell multiple times ... "

Her nephew raised concerns to Spring Gate and "to his great surprise, the nursing staff openly admitted to (him) that (she) was being prescribed these drugs 'to keep her in the bed,' according to the lawsuit.

Staff also told him she was prescribed the drugs "calm her down, to keep her behavior at a manageable level," and "through his conversations with nurses and other residents at Spring Gate, (he learned) that Spring Gate's unlawful practice of administering anti-psychotic drugs was not limited to (his aunt)," according to the lawsuit.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Tennessee State Attorney General's Office.

"Protecting the health and safety of Medicare patients is one of our primary concerns," Derrick L. Jackson, of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said in a statement. "Nursing facilities that fail to meet minimum quality standards can expect to pay a heavy price for neglecting their residents."

Attorney Jerry Martin, who represented the plaintiff in the case, said the company's agreement with HHS also "will go a long way towards keeping future patients safe."

"The U.S. Attorney's office in Memphis does great work on these types of cases which aren't always easy," he said. "We appreciate the government carefully investigating our allegations and reaching a resolution here on behalf of the taxpayers."

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