On June 28, 2023 a
Motion-Secondary
was filed
involving a dispute between
People Of The State Of New York, By Letitia James, Attorney General Of The State Of New York,
and
Abraham Operations Associates Llc Dba Beth Abraham Center For Rehabilitation And Nursing,
Aharon Lantzitsky,
Amir Abramchik,
Aron Gittleson,
Beth Rozenberg,
Bis Funding Capital Llc,
Centers For Care Llc Dba Centers Health Care,
Cfsc Downstate Llc,
Daryl Hagler,
David Greenberg,
Delaware Operations Associates Llc Dba Buffalo Center For Rehabilitation And Nursing,
Delaware Real Property Associates Llc,
Elliot Kahan,
Hollis Operating Co Llc Dba Holliswood Center For Rehabilitation And Healthcare,
Hollis Real Estate Co Llc,
Jeffrey Sicklick,
Jonathan Hagler,
Kenneth Rozenberg,
Leo Lerner,
Light Property Holdings Ii Associates Llc,
Mordechai Moti Hellman,
Reuven Kaufman,
Schnur Operations Associates Llc Dba Martine Center For Rehabilitation And Nursing,
Skilled Staffing Llc,
Sol Blumenfeld,
for Commercial - Other - Commercial Division
in the District Court of New York County.
Preview
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023
In the Matter of an Investigation Pursuant to
N.Y. Exec. Law § 63(12) re: The Buffalo Center
for Rehabilitation and Nursing. AFFIDAVIT OF
Bianca Gutzmore
STATE OF NEW YORK )
) ss.:
COUNTY OF ERIE )
Bianca Gutzmore, being duly sworn, attests as follows:
1. I am 33 years old and currently reside in Niagara Falls, New York. I am employed
at Erie County as a social worker.
2. I submit this affidavit in connection with the New York Attorney General's
investigation into the Buffalo Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing ("Buffalo Center"), a
nursing home located at 1014 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY 14209 and I set forth below my
experiences and observations while caring for and speaking with my father, L.H., who is 65
years old, and a former resident of the Buffalo Center.as a resident of Buffalo Center. I was my
father's Health Care Proxy while he was at Buffalo Center and still am.
3. My father resided at Buffalo Center from May 17, 2021, to November 14, 2021.
He currently lives with me.
4. My father suffered two strokes, one in March 2021 and another in April 2021.
Right up until that time he was independent and very active. He would garden, travel, and take
care of my mom all by himself; but my mother passed away last year while my dad was in the
nursing home. He worked in the agriculture and the warehouse industry. He was discharged
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FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023
from the hospital to Buffalo Center on May 25, 2021. While he was physically affected by his
strokes, he was coherent and could communicate his needs.
5. While my father was in Buffalo Center, I would visit him every other day. Every
time I visited my father, his room smelled like piss and shit, and I would have to change him
because he was soiled. My father would be so embarrassed that he soiled himself, he would
throw his dirty pants into the garbage in his room. The facility wouldn't change him for long
periods of time, and he didn't want to sit in that shit. I would have to regularly change his bed
sheets because the did not do it. did not change his sheets because were short-
facility They they
staffed, and in my opinion, they were lazy. Every time I walked into the facility the workers
would be sitting at the desk and not doing their job.
6. I would call the receptionist, the administrator, and the floor charge nurse Tara, to
complain about my Dad's sheets or him not being changed, and they would all tell me they were
short staffed. Once they started letting visitors in, there were not enough staff to bring the meals
and changes of clothing to my Dad's room, so I would do it when I visited him. I would bring
the meals to the other residents also. Because of all these concerns, I signed up as one of my
father's care givers.
7. My father did not get bathed and was not shaved as often as he was supposed to
be while he was at Buffalo Center. My father was supposed to get showered every Monday,
Wednesday and Friday, but I would guess he was only getting showered about once every two
weeks because when I brought him home, he stunk. He would get right in the shower when he
got to my house, because he knew he needed one and that I was going to tell him to anyway. I
was not allowed to bathe my father, but I would wash him up when I visited because they did not
shower him.
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FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023
8. My father lost about 70 pounds because the facility would give him meals that
had pork in them, which he did not eat because of his Jamaican culture. I told Tara, the charge
nurse, and the social worker Carmelitta, many times that my father did not eat pork, and I believe
they put it in the nursing notes, but they gave it to him anyway. I had to bring my father meals all
the time, because the facility kept giving him pork and giving him cold food.
9. My father had a beer belly when he went into Buffalo Center and had no belly
when I got him out. He looked frail and fragile from losing all that weight.
10. My father had a rash on his hands that went up to his mid-wrists, and he said it
was from bed bug bites. I had to get the blisters treated after my father left Buffalo Center,
because they weren't treating them properly. They were not cleaning the areas or using creams
while he was there.
11. My father did not receive the physical or occupational therapy he was supposed to
for the last two months he was at Buffalo Center, because the facility said he no longer needed it;
but they still argued with me when I wanted him discharged. I had to arrange to get him
evaluated three times by his insurance company before he got discharged because the evaluations
he got while at the facility showed him needing 24-hour care. It took me three months to get him
out of the facility because of the evaluations. I believe if my father got the therapy he was
supposed to at the nursing home he would have been out sooner. When I had a physical therapy
evaluation for him at my home the therapist told me he did not need any therapy.
12. I took my father out of the facility to live with me on November 14, 2021, but I
felt it was an unsafe discharge because the facility did not send any of my father's medications
with him. My father is on seizure medication, diabetes medication and blood pressure
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FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023
medication. I couldn't get the prescriptions filled, because the facility continued to fill them. I
had to get my father into my own primary care doctor to get his medications.
13. I bought my father seven name brand outfits for him to wear while he was the
Buffalo Center, but I never saw him in any of them when I visited him. When I went to pick up
my father to take him home, he was in a Buffalo Center jogging suit and not the in the clothes I
bought for him which were name brand. The only thing my father was wearing that I brought for
him was a pair of sneakers I bought.
14. I complained to the New York State Department of Health regularly when my
father was at Buffalo Center, because of the care he was receiving, but I never got a letter or a
confirmation number from the Department of Health.
BiÄnca hÃdtzinore
Sworn to before me this . .
day of f 2022
Not Sta Ne York Mary L Henry
Public, NOTARY PUBUC, STATE OF NEW YORK
No. NH[( .2 9 9 St Comm. No. 01HE6299052
Qualified in f / Cpunty my comm pir u 7, 202(,
Commission Expires: , f // /Ap2/
4 of 5
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 202.8-b
I, Todd Pettigrew, an attorney duly admitted to practice law before the Courts of the
State of New York, hereby certify that this Affidavit of Bianca Gutzmore complies with the
word count limit set forth in Rule 202.8-b as it contains 1086 words, excluding the parts of the
Affidavit explicitly exempted by Rule. In preparing this certification, I have relied on the word
count of the word processing system used to prepare this Affidavit.
Dated: Pearl River, New York
May 22, 2023
Respectfully submitted,
Letitia James
Attorney General of the State of New York
By·
Todd Pett grew
Special Assistant Attorney General
Office of the Attorney General
Medicaid Fraud Control Unit
1001
One Blue Hill Plaza, Floor
Pearl River, NY 10965
todd.pettigrew@ag.ny.gov
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Preview
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023 In the Matter of an Investigation Pursuant to N.Y. Exec. Law § 63(12) re: The Buffalo Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing. AFFIDAVIT OF Bianca Gutzmore STATE OF NEW YORK ) ) ss.: COUNTY OF ERIE ) Bianca Gutzmore, being duly sworn, attests as follows: 1. I am 33 years old and currently reside in Niagara Falls, New York. I am employed at Erie County as a social worker. 2. I submit this affidavit in connection with the New York Attorney General's investigation into the Buffalo Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing ("Buffalo Center"), a nursing home located at 1014 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY 14209 and I set forth below my experiences and observations while caring for and speaking with my father, L.H., who is 65 years old, and a former resident of the Buffalo Center.as a resident of Buffalo Center. I was my father's Health Care Proxy while he was at Buffalo Center and still am. 3. My father resided at Buffalo Center from May 17, 2021, to November 14, 2021. He currently lives with me. 4. My father suffered two strokes, one in March 2021 and another in April 2021. Right up until that time he was independent and very active. He would garden, travel, and take care of my mom all by himself; but my mother passed away last year while my dad was in the nursing home. He worked in the agriculture and the warehouse industry. He was discharged 1 of 5 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023 from the hospital to Buffalo Center on May 25, 2021. While he was physically affected by his strokes, he was coherent and could communicate his needs. 5. While my father was in Buffalo Center, I would visit him every other day. Every time I visited my father, his room smelled like piss and shit, and I would have to change him because he was soiled. My father would be so embarrassed that he soiled himself, he would throw his dirty pants into the garbage in his room. The facility wouldn't change him for long periods of time, and he didn't want to sit in that shit. I would have to regularly change his bed sheets because the did not do it. did not change his sheets because were short- facility They they staffed, and in my opinion, they were lazy. Every time I walked into the facility the workers would be sitting at the desk and not doing their job. 6. I would call the receptionist, the administrator, and the floor charge nurse Tara, to complain about my Dad's sheets or him not being changed, and they would all tell me they were short staffed. Once they started letting visitors in, there were not enough staff to bring the meals and changes of clothing to my Dad's room, so I would do it when I visited him. I would bring the meals to the other residents also. Because of all these concerns, I signed up as one of my father's care givers. 7. My father did not get bathed and was not shaved as often as he was supposed to be while he was at Buffalo Center. My father was supposed to get showered every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but I would guess he was only getting showered about once every two weeks because when I brought him home, he stunk. He would get right in the shower when he got to my house, because he knew he needed one and that I was going to tell him to anyway. I was not allowed to bathe my father, but I would wash him up when I visited because they did not shower him. 2 of 5 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023 8. My father lost about 70 pounds because the facility would give him meals that had pork in them, which he did not eat because of his Jamaican culture. I told Tara, the charge nurse, and the social worker Carmelitta, many times that my father did not eat pork, and I believe they put it in the nursing notes, but they gave it to him anyway. I had to bring my father meals all the time, because the facility kept giving him pork and giving him cold food. 9. My father had a beer belly when he went into Buffalo Center and had no belly when I got him out. He looked frail and fragile from losing all that weight. 10. My father had a rash on his hands that went up to his mid-wrists, and he said it was from bed bug bites. I had to get the blisters treated after my father left Buffalo Center, because they weren't treating them properly. They were not cleaning the areas or using creams while he was there. 11. My father did not receive the physical or occupational therapy he was supposed to for the last two months he was at Buffalo Center, because the facility said he no longer needed it; but they still argued with me when I wanted him discharged. I had to arrange to get him evaluated three times by his insurance company before he got discharged because the evaluations he got while at the facility showed him needing 24-hour care. It took me three months to get him out of the facility because of the evaluations. I believe if my father got the therapy he was supposed to at the nursing home he would have been out sooner. When I had a physical therapy evaluation for him at my home the therapist told me he did not need any therapy. 12. I took my father out of the facility to live with me on November 14, 2021, but I felt it was an unsafe discharge because the facility did not send any of my father's medications with him. My father is on seizure medication, diabetes medication and blood pressure 3 of 5 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023 medication. I couldn't get the prescriptions filled, because the facility continued to fill them. I had to get my father into my own primary care doctor to get his medications. 13. I bought my father seven name brand outfits for him to wear while he was the Buffalo Center, but I never saw him in any of them when I visited him. When I went to pick up my father to take him home, he was in a Buffalo Center jogging suit and not the in the clothes I bought for him which were name brand. The only thing my father was wearing that I brought for him was a pair of sneakers I bought. 14. I complained to the New York State Department of Health regularly when my father was at Buffalo Center, because of the care he was receiving, but I never got a letter or a confirmation number from the Department of Health. BiÄnca hÃdtzinore Sworn to before me this . . day of f 2022 Not Sta Ne York Mary L Henry Public, NOTARY PUBUC, STATE OF NEW YORK No. NH[( .2 9 9 St Comm. No. 01HE6299052 Qualified in f / Cpunty my comm pir u 7, 202(, Commission Expires: , f // /Ap2/ 4 of 5 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/28/2023 06:09 PM INDEX NO. 451549/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 645 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/28/2023 CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 202.8-b I, Todd Pettigrew, an attorney duly admitted to practice law before the Courts of the State of New York, hereby certify that this Affidavit of Bianca Gutzmore complies with the word count limit set forth in Rule 202.8-b as it contains 1086 words, excluding the parts of the Affidavit explicitly exempted by Rule. In preparing this certification, I have relied on the word count of the word processing system used to prepare this Affidavit. Dated: Pearl River, New York May 22, 2023 Respectfully submitted, Letitia James Attorney General of the State of New York By· Todd Pett grew Special Assistant Attorney General Office of the Attorney General Medicaid Fraud Control Unit 1001 One Blue Hill Plaza, Floor Pearl River, NY 10965 todd.pettigrew@ag.ny.gov 5 of 5