Louisiana Nursing Home Owner Facing Felony Charges After Deadly Hurricane Ida Evacuation

The owner of seven Louisiana nursing homes was arrested this week on felony charges in connection with the death of residents who were evacuated to a warehouse before Hurricane Ida last year.

Bob Glynn Dean, Jr. has been charged in Tangipahoa Parish with eight felony counts of cruelty to persons with infirmities, five felony counts of Medicaid fraud and two felony counts of obstruction of justice, according to a news release.

A joint investigation by the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigations found that Dean allegedly refused to move residents out of the warehouse after the hurricane, billed Medicaid for dates his residents were not receiving proper care and engaged in conduct intended to intimidate or obstruct public health officials and law enforcement.

The areas where these facilities were located faced significant flooding and power outages as a result of the hurricane.

During evacuations the nursing home residents were moved to a warehouse where conditions quickly deteriorated when the hurricane hit and water entered the building, according to an Associated Press report.

Five of the deaths were classified as storm-related by the coroner, according to a statement issued last September by the state’s department of health, however definitive causes of death have not yet been determined.

The facilities involved include River Palms Nursing and Rehab, South Lafourche Nursing and Rehab, Maison Orleans Healthcare Center, Park Place Healthcare Nursing Home, West Jefferson Health Care Center, Maison DeVille Nursing Home and Maison DeVille Nursing Home of Harvey.

Dean lost state licenses for the seven facilities and in May the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced he was prohibited from receiving federal funding, the AP reported.

The HHS Office of Inspector General assisted in the investigation. Additional charges or legal action may be filed in the future as the investigation is ongoing, according to the release.