A.G. Underwood Announces $1.65 Million Joint State-Federal Settlement With Centers Plan For Healthy Living Over False Medicaid Billing

Centers Plan Billed Medicaid for Managed Long-Term Care Services that Its Members Did Not Qualify For or Receive

New York’s Medicaid Program to Recover $1.65 Million in Restitution and Penalties

  Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood announced today a joint state-federal settlement with Centers Plan for Healthy Living LLC (“Centers Plan”) over allegations that its managed long-term care plan (“Centers Plan MLTCP”) submitted fraudulent requests to New York’s Medicaid program for monthly premiums, violating the state and federal False Claims Acts. New York’s Medicaid program will receive $1.65 million in restitution and penalties from the settlement. 

“Submitting phony bills undermines the integrity of our Medicaid system and cheats New Yorkers,” said Attorney General Underwood. “Today’s settlement serves as a reminder that we will hold accountable those who seek to game the system for their own financial benefit.”

Medicaid is a jointly-funded state and federal program that provides health care to individuals in need. Managed Long Term Care plans (“MLTCs”) receive monthly capitation payments from Medicaid – similar to insurance premiums – for each member enrolled in the MLTC plan, in exchange for arranging and providing certain community-based long-term care services (“CBLTC”). Services may include skilled nursing services in the home, therapies in the home, home health aide services, personal care services in the home, and adult day health care. To be eligible for enrollment into an MLTC plan, a Medicaid beneficiary must, among other things, be assessed as needing CBLTC services for more than 120 days from the date of enrollment. Centers Plan contracted with licensed home care services agencies to provide skilled nursing and home health aide services to Centers Plan MLTCP members. 

A joint investigation conducted by the New York Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York found that, from April 1, 2013 through December 31, 2015, numerous Centers Plan MLTCP members did not receive CBLTC services during at least a portion of the period when they were enrolled in Centers Plan’s MLTCP. For a number of members, there was no record that Centers Plan provided them with any services whatsoever for most of their enrollment period. Centers Plan failed to disenroll these members in a timely manner and continued to collect monthly premiums from Medicaid even though these members were not eligible to remain in Centers Plan’s MLTCP. During that time, the payments that Centers Plan received from Medicaid for providing services to MLTC members were generally $2,500 to $4,300 per member per month.

The settlement agreement resolves state and federal allegations that Centers Plan submitted false claims for monthly capitation payments for Centers Plan MLTCP members who, for at least some period of their enrollment in the Centers Plan MLTCP, did not receive qualifying community-based long-term care services as required by contract and therefore should have been disenrolled from the plan. 

Click here to view a copy of the settlement agreement.

This investigation was initiated after a whistleblower filed a lawsuit under the qui tam provisions of the federal and New York False Claims Acts, which allow private persons, known as “relators,” to file civil actions on behalf of the government and share in any recovery. The relator in this case will receive a portion of the settlement proceeds after full payment by Centers Plan. 

The investigation and settlement were coordinated between the New York State Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.  

A.G. Underwood Announces Election Day Hotline To Protect Voter Access During State Primary Election

Voters Experiencing Problems Can Call 800-771-7755 or Email civil.rights@ag.ny.gov Between 6AM and 9PM on Primary Day

Attorney General’s Hotline Troubleshoots Range of Election Day Issues

  Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood announced her office’s Election Day Hotline, which is available to help troubleshoot and resolve a range of issues encountered by voters at the polls during the statewide primary election on Thursday, September 13^th. The Attorney General urges voters experiencing problems or issues at the polls to call the office’s hotline at 800-771-7755 or email civil.rights@ag.ny.gov at any time between 6:00 AM and 9:00 PM on Thursday. The hotline will be staffed by attorneys and staff in the Attorney General’s Civil Right’s Bureau.

“Voting is a fundamental right — and all eligible voters should be able to freely exercise that right,” said Attorney General Underwood. “Any New Yorkers who encounter barriers to voting or other problems at their poll sites should immediately contact my office.”

Voters registered in New York City can click here to find their poll site. Voters registered in New York outside New York City can click here to find their poll site.

The Attorney General’s office has operated the voter access hotline since November 2012. During previous elections, the office fielded hundreds – and sometimes thousands – of complaints from voters across the state and worked with local election officials and others to address issues. Last year, the Attorney General’s office sued and secured a consent decree with the New York City Board of Elections regarding voter registration purges.

The Election Day hotline is part of the office’s ongoing effort to reduce barriers to voting. To avoid any potential conflict of interest, inquiries regarding any campaign for Attorney General will be referred to the local Board of Elections or an independent voter helpline.

Attorney General Underwood reminds all registered voters that they have the right to accessible elections. In addition, all registered voters have the right to vote free from coercion or intimidation, whether by election officials or any other person.

The office will receive and respond to election-related complaints relating to any of the statutes that the office enforces. The Attorney General’s Election Day Hotline is being coordinated by Assistant Attorneys General Ajay Saini and Conor Duffy of the Civil Rights Bureau, which is led by Bureau Chief Lourdes Rosado. The Social Justice Division is led by Executive Deputy Attorney General Matthew Colangelo.

NEW YORK CITY ANNOUNCES LAWSUIT AGAINST THREE ILLEGAL HOTEL OPERATORS

Operators generated approximately $1 million from 5,000 visitors at seven buildings

  New York City today announced a lawsuit against a group of illegal hotel operators for using deceptive practices to offer illegal and unsafe short-term rental accommodations in Downtown Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. This is the first lawsuit that the City has filed against illegal hotel operators across multiple boroughs.

For more than three years, the defendants used multiple host accounts with fictitious identities to illegally advertise at least 15 housing units in seven buildings across three boroughs. On several occasions, the defendants also misled guests about the legality of the listings using false addresses and deceptive explanations for guests’ interaction with city inspectors. The Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement has also identified 10 bookings for future dates.

“Illegal hotel operators pose a threat to our housing stock and our neighborhoods. We will use any tools necessary to shut them down and keep New Yorkers safe,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

“This is highly commercialized activity where operators are misleading visitors and taking housing units away from New Yorkers—and they’re making a fortune in the process. We’re taking action to preserve the city’s housing stock and to defend visitors’ rights to safe and legal accommodations,” said Christian Klossner, Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement.

The defendants in the suit include Alexandra Pavlenok, Ekaterina Plotnikova, and Stepan Solovyev. The seven buildings are located at the following addresses:

• 12 John Street, New York
• 40 Water Street, New York
• 151 Stanton Street, New York
• 153 Stanton Street, New York
• 159 Bleecker Street, New York
• 238 Gates Avenue, Brooklyn
• 17-12 Menahan Street, Queens

OSE has taken extensive enforcement action to combat the defendants’ illegal activity, including issuing 80 violations from Department of Buildings inspectors, a partial vacate order based on “imminent danger to life or public safety,” nine fire violation orders, five fire summonses and one fire criminal summons issued to the owners of the buildings. Seven OSE advertising summonses were issued directly to operators.

Brooklyn and Queens have experienced particularly significant growth in short-term rental listings over the past few years. The City’s recently passed information sharing requirements for short-term rental platforms (Local Law 146-A) will give OSE important tools to more effectively and efficiently identify unscrupulous operators and landlords, and help deter these violations.

“Illegal hotel operators like the ones in this suit exacerbate the City’s housing affordability crisis. Shady profiteers like these that use our badly needed housing stock to turn a quick buck are shameful, and this is a perfect example of why we need to maintain enforcement efforts against this harmful behavior. I am thankful that the Office of Special Enforcement is continuing its work to combat this pressing problem. The Council will continue to address this crisis in any way it can as well,” said Council Speaker Corey Johnson.

ENGEL AND TRI-CAUCUS CHAIRS DEMAND ANSWERS ON STATE DEPARTMENT POLICY ON HATE SPEECH

  Today, Rep. Eliot L. Engel, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; Rep. Judy Chu, Chairwoman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus; Reps. Karen Bass and Marc Veasey, Co-Chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus Foreign Affairs and National Security Task Force; Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; and Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, decried disturbing reports detailing the Administration’s policy to refrain from condemning hate speech in the international community. Recent reporting revealed that State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration Andrew Veprek disputed the idea that leaders have a “duty to condemn hate speech or incitement.” In a letter, the Members expressed outrage and demanded an explanation of this position.

“This is dangerous policy. The United States Holocaust Museum notes that genocide is often preceded and accompanied by widespread hate speech. Ensuring that hate speech is condemned is not just basic decency—it’s also a tool for preventing atrocities. Ultimately, this latest blunder amplifies the increasingly widespread belief that some officials in the Trump administration are racist and support an anti-foreigner, anti-Muslim discriminatory agenda and further erodes our national credibility on the world stage,” the Members wrote.

Full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Dear Mr. Secretary:

We are extremely alarmed by the Trump Administration’s policy of remaining silent in international fora about racism and xenophobia and declining to condemn hate speech and incitement. It’s outrageous that any administration, regardless of political ideology, would refuse to stand for these basic American ideals.

Documents revealed in the press show that State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration Andrew Veprek disputed the idea that leaders have a “duty to condemn hate speech or incitement” and tried to strike an entire section of a United Nations document that links fighting racism with building a diverse democratic society.

This is dangerous policy. The United States Holocaust Museum notes that genocide is often preceded and accompanied by widespread hate speech. Ensuring that hate speech is condemned is not just basic decency—it’s also a tool for preventing atrocities.  

The Trump administration’s retreat from the world has directly undermined our long held global leadership role. His racist and xenophobic policies have slammed America’s door on some of the world’s most desperate people. Ultimately, this latest blunder amplifies the increasingly widespread perception that some officials in the Trump administration are racist and support an anti-foreigner, anti-Muslim discriminatory agenda and further erodes our national credibility on the world stage.

We demand an explanation and expect that DAS Veprek will be made available to meet with our staffs to explain these baffling actions and the policies behind them. Please contact Sajit Gandhi of the Foreign Affairs Committee staff at (202) 226 8467 by the end of the week to schedule this meeting without delay.

                                                   

Sincerely,

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW By Councilman, Rubén Díaz Sr. District 18 Bronx County, New York

MAYOR OF SAN JUAN CARMEN YULIN CRUZ AND FORMER NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL SPEAKER MELISSA MARK VIVERITO ARE DEAD WRONG

 You should know that when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico on September 20th, 2017, we in Bronx County, executed a humanitarian relief effort that lasted 24 hours.
 

It is important for you to know that on Saturday, September 30^th, 2017 together with Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. and The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization, we coordinated a relief effort to help Puerto Rico in their time of need.

 

This activity was supposed to begin at 12 noon and end at 5 pm, but the response was so large that the activity continued up until the following Sunday, September 31^stat 12 noon.

 

We were able to to fill 6 large containers for Puerto Rico and one for Mexico, but we ran into a problem. We were expecting to fill only 1 or 2 containers, but the response was so big we filled out 7 containers and by 9pm we still had extra goods, foods, water, and clothes that we had no idea what to do with.

 

Thanks to a call placed to Governor Andrew Cuomo by my son Ruben Diaz, Jr., that night 21 National Guard trucks arrived (see video attached) to help us move the rest of goods and to help clear the street.

 

I, as a Puerto Rican, and the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization have no way to thank the Governor for coming to the rescue and giving us a big hand. The Bronx executed a huge Puerto Rican relief effort and we owe our gratitude to Governor Andrew Cuomo. 

 

That is why I can’t understand, with all Governor Cuomo has done for Puerto Rico, the Mayor of San Juan Puerto Rico Carmen Yulin Cruz and former City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, both Puerto Rican women, have rejected the Governor and thrown their support to a person who refused to march in the National Puerto Rican Day Parade and has done nothing for the people of Puerto Rico.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, they both are dead wrong in this decision not to support a person who has given so much to help Puerto Rico and our Puerto Rican brothers & sisters on the island. 

 

I hope most Puerto Ricans are not so ungrateful, and that other Hispanics help us show our gratitude to the Governor.                                                                          

 

This is Councilman Rev. Ruben Diaz, and this is what you should know.

South Bronx Unite - Bronx Residents Denounce Majora Carter's Displacement Efforts

  South Bronx Unite stands in support of our activists sisters and brothers from Take Back the Bronx in denouncing efforts to displace long time residents from the South Bronx. Specifically, we take issue with strategies on behalf of for profit developers trying to act and serve as a Community Land Trust (CLT). 

We recognize CLTs as a community lead grassroots effort to oppose the forces of real estate speculation. The fundamentals of Community Land Trusts fights to preserve the right of low-income people to live in the city by supporting Community Land Trusts and other community-led housing and neighborhood development efforts. We believe that land is a common good, and that housing is a human right. Housing should be for people, not profit. Decisions about land and housing should include all community members, and prioritize people with extremely low incomes, who are homeless or otherwise in dire need of housing or in threat of displacement, and not served by the private market or for profit developers.

NEW YORK TASK FORCE 1 URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAM DEPLOYS TO NORTH CAROLINA IN SUPPORT OF HURRICANE FLORENCE

  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has activated the Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) New York Task Force 1 (NY TF-1) team to deploy to North Carolina in support of Hurricane Florence. The US&R NY TF-1 team is managed by the New York City Emergency Management Department and is made up of specially trained personnel from FDNY and NYPD.

New York Task Force 1 specializes in urban search and rescue, disaster recovery, and emergency triage and medicine. The eighty-three member team, along with six canines, departed from New York City Emergency Management’s Brooklyn facility to Kinston, North Carolina, where they will pre-stage ahead of potential assignments. The team is deploying with various equipment and tools to support its operations, including eight water rescue boats, motors, items to support rescues from collapsed structures and confined spaces, as well as a compilation of hazardous materials response equipment. The team is expected to arrive in North Carolina on Tuesday night. There are 28 FEMA US&R teams strategically located throughout the United States that can be deployed within six hours of activation.

The FEMA US&R program originated as a response system for natural disasters. Since the program’s inception, the task forces have broadened the scope of US&R’s work. Two early activations of the US&R system occurred in response to Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and the 1994 Northridge Earthquake in California. FEMA US&R teams also activated in response to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. NY TF-1 deployments include Hurricanes Ike and Gustav in 2008, the Haiti Earthquake and Hurricane Earl in 2010, Hurricane Matthew in 2016, and Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, in 2017.

Primary Predictions 34th State Senate and 87th Assembly District

100 PERCENT

By Robert Press

Primary Day Predictions 2018

  Having predicted Mark Gjonaj's victory last year on the head with a prediction of 39 percent here are my predictions for Thursday's Democratic Primary 2018.

Re-election for Governor Cuomo and Lt. Governor Hochul, but in the Attorney General race I predict that Zephyr Teachout to be the winner. 

In the 34th State Senate race it should not be determined on election night as I believe that the race maybe that close, and to close to call. So good luck to both candidates when it comes to counting the absentee ballots which may determine the winner.

In the 87th Assembly District Sergeant John Perez should win with 51 Percent of the vote, Karines Reyes second with 41 Percent of the vote, and Farah Despeignes third with 8 Percent of the vote. 

Finally in the 84th Assembly District Incumbent Carmen Arroyo may be the only incumbent Bronx state legislator who wins on primary day 2018. 

There are also some small party position races also in the Bronx.