Thoreau care agency having more financial woes

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

THOREAU — An agency that provides care for elders in the Thoreau area is apparently having financial problems again.

Attendants who contract with Thoreau Care, formerly known as Compassion Personal Care Services, said Friday that the agency was not able to pay them on Friday as promised and that they have now been told that they won’t be paid until next Friday.

In April a change in the board removed the agency’s director, Fannie George. Since that time the agency has been in the news because of its financial problems. At that time, the agency began bouncing checks and businesses in the area started refusing to cash employee checks.

The company again made the news the following month when the McKinley County Sheriff’s Department was called in to investigate allegations of misuse of federal and state funds by both past and current members of the board.

One attendant, whose job is to take care of elderly homebound patients in Thoreau, said that agency has been experiencing financial problems for the past couple of weeks.

“We were paid in cash last week for the first time,” she said, adding that she did not want to give her name because of a fear of retaliation by the agency. “I’m worried now about whether they put money aside for withholding and social society.”

This week when the 167 attendants sought to be paid, they were told that their pay would come out next week. She said officials for the company blamed Fannie George, the former director, but “everyone knows that she has nothing more to do with us.”

Attempts to get a response from officials at Thoreau were unsuccessful with managers there on Friday said that any statement would have to come from their attorney. When she was asked who their attorney was, she said “hold on” and then after waiting for five minutes, she came back and hung up the phone.

The agency was immediately called back and the man who answered was asked who the agency’s attorney was, he checked with his supervisors and said “He’ll call you” and hung up without asking for the paper’s phone number.
Since the money for the running of the agency comes from federal and state grants, the McKinley County Sheriff’s Department sent the complaint to federal officials for investigation.

Officials for the Medicaid and Medicare Fraud Division in Albuquerque were not available for comment on Friday.