Feds Warn Nursing Homes To Stop Illegal, Exploitative Admissions Practices & Debt Collection

On September 8, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) notified nursing homes and debt collectors that requiring family members or informal caregivers to guarantee payment for a resident’s stay is exploitation and may be illegal. Guarantee requirements and efforts to collect on a resident’s debt from family members not financially responsible for the resident are invalid under the Nursing Home Reform Act, and such practices violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The CFPB is working with the federal Department of . . .