PITTSBURGH, PA — Two Pittsburgh-area nursing homes, Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center (Brighton) and Mount Lebanon Rehabilitation and Wellness Center (Mt. Lebanon), have been found guilty of making false statements in connection with the payment of healthcare benefits. The verdict comes after a two-day deliberation by a federal jury, as announced by United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan on Monday, December 18, 2023.
Brighton and Mt. Lebanon were tried before United States District Judge Robert J. Colville in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The companies operating these facilities, Comprehensive Healthcare Management Services, LLC (for Brighton) and Mt. Lebanon Operations, LLC (for Mt. Lebanon), were convicted of six counts and four counts respectively. Additional individual defendants were acquitted.
Evidence presented at trial revealed that the facilities falsified staffing information provided to the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). This was done to show compliance with the conditions of participation in Medicare and Medicaid. The false certifications were provided to avoid penalties that government regulators could have imposed for failing to meet those conditions, including providing sufficient staffing to meet the needs of the residents.
Judge Colville has scheduled sentencing for a date to be set in May 2024. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of five years’ probation, a fine of $500,000, or both. The actual sentence will depend on the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
This case was prosecuted by a team of Assistant United States Attorneys and a Special Assistant United States Attorney. The investigation leading to these convictions involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.
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