Whistle Blowing Retaliation

[mizging]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? CA
I'm in dire need of advice. I have NO money for an attorney and the weinee I found who agreed to write a letter to the agency has backed down as soon as they responded with a letter from their own attorney which made nothing but false allegations about me.
I worked for a hospice for the past year as a quality control person. I was constantly amazed by the lack of care, failure to note medications and treatments in charts and backdating and falsification of records. Despite my reports, nothing changed. Despite the stress and the fact that I needed a job, I hung in there hoping I would make a difference. It became apparent that they did not value my opinion and when I realized I was in jeopardy, I submitted a letter to them asking for protection under the "Whistle Blowing" act. I notified numerous state and federal agencies, the mayor of the community, even tried local media to keep the aged and dying patents from suffering needlessly...all went ignored. I have documentation which I photocopied from files as part of my job. Now, the letter sent stated that I have slandered them, stolen files, and was a hostile employee. They have denied my unemployment benefits and forced me to give up my home and become ill from the worry. This was never about money for me, but now they have made it personal. I still want nothing more than my unemployment benefits which would allow me gas money to look for a job. I just want the horrible manner in which they abuse the dying and take advantage of state funding to cease. Can anyone suggest an avenue of help for these people?
Thank you.
Miz

 

[Beth3]

If you were retaliated against (terminated?) for contacting the appropriate regulatory agency to report violations, then that is most likely prohibited but since we don't know what agency you contacted, it's not possible to comment further. You may contact the regulatory agency again and report the retaliation and see if they can assist or advise you.

They have denied my unemployment benefits and forced me to give up my home and become ill from the worry. Employers neither grant nor deny UC benefits - the State does. If the State found you were disqualified from receiving benefits, then you had the right to file for a hearing with the State and have the decision reviewed. You only had a limited amount of time to do so after receiving the Initial Determination and it sounds like a considerable amount of time has passed since then. You likely had only 2 - 4 weeks to file an appeal with the UC Division and if that time has passed, then I'm afraid that's it.

This was never about money for me, but now they have made it personal. Not that I'm faulting your intentions but you're the one who went to the Mayor and the news media with allegations. It's not surprising that the employer has adopted a "fight fire with fire" strategy.

Can anyone suggest an avenue of help for these people? The regulatory agency that licenses this hospice and other medical care facililties in your State. It's a good bet that this hospice receives federal Medicare/Medicaid funding. You might also contact the Social Security Administration as well.

 

[mizging]

Whistle Blowing

Thank you for your response. I didn't start phoning the Mayor or the media until none of the governmental agencies to which I wrote failed to respond. The fact that the letter to the employer specifically listed my intentions to report my findings and asked for whistle blowing protection only forced them to terminate me and then file allegations that I was a disgruntled employee. I WAS disgruntled and for very good reason. The sole agency that responded was not very assuring about correcting the neglect and care issue, rather stated that it was a very LONG process and the only place they could hit the hospice was in the wallet. As far as medical, medicare fraud, I was advised by that same agency that unless it was in the millions of dollars not to bother! To say that I've lost faith in the process is an understatement. I want to let this go, but I keep thinking of those already doomed to death, entrusted to the care of a hospice, and being failed by those charged with making their last days as comfortable as possible. We treat animals better than the patients I witnessed. My position was created after another audit found them negligent, but I see now that there is nothing I can do but hope that Dateline or 20/20 gets wind of the story.

 

[Beth3]

"The fact that the letter to the employer specifically listed my intentions to report my findings and asked for whistle blowing protection only forced them to terminate me and then file allegations that I was a disgruntled employee." In many instances, whistleblower protections only apply after the employee has contacted a government agency to make a good faith complaint regarding violations of the law. This is something you need to discuss with an attorney however.

The sole agency that responded was not very assuring about correcting the neglect and care issue, rather stated that it was a very LONG process and the only place they could hit the hospice was in the wallet. I don't work in the health care field but it's my understanding that that's the case. A medical facility failing to provide the required standard of care is subject to fines and penalties. If the violations are severe and persistent enough, then the agency can pull their license thereby shutting the facility down. If there is criminal neglect, then I imagine the appropriate District Attorney could prosecute members of management.

You might try contacting the closest Legal Aid Society and see if they can assist or advise you.