Hearing officer grants two‑week continuance in Hereford discharge case; resident says he did not receive discharge summary

A hearing officer presiding over a Department of Public Health matter granted a two‑week continuance on Feb. 2 in a case over a Notice of Intent to Discharge for resident Daniel Taverna from a facility at 614 New Britain Avenue in Hereford. The next hearing was set for Feb. 19 at 2:00 p.m.

The officer opened the session by entering five exhibits into the record, including the Notice of Intent to Discharge dated Jan. 17, 2026, and an appeal request submitted by Taverna on Jan. 22. The facility's objection and a prior request for a continuance filed by Brenda Tector, Regional Long Term Care Ombudsman, were also entered.

During the hearing, facility representative Emily Guzman said staff hand‑delivered a discharge plan to Taverna on Jan. 17 and that she had sent a discharge summary form from the Department of Public Health portal to the ombudsman office. Guzman named Marielle Vasquez as the staff member who hand‑delivered the materials. Guzman told the hearing the facility had prepared incident reports and detailed staff notes.

Taverna disputed receipt of the discharge plan. "I got no discharge summary, ma'am. I didn't receive anything except ... the notice of intent to discharge," he said during the hearing. The hearing officer said the office must have the discharge plan available at the hearing and asked Guzman to email it immediately; Guzman resent the form during the session and the office confirmed receipt.

The hearing officer noted a DPH requirement referenced during the session that a discharge plan or discharge summary form be provided to the resident within seven days of issuing a discharge notice and also made available to the commissioner's designee prior to the hearing. The officer said several incident reports, including a Jan. 21 critical incident the facility described as involving threats to staff and property damage, had been submitted after the notice date and that ongoing incident reports could hinder the resident's ability to make his case.

Taverna had requested more time to obtain legal representation. The officer granted a limited continuance—two weeks—rather than the longer extension Taverna sought, and scheduled the hearing for Feb. 19 at 2:00 p.m. The officer instructed both parties to submit any documents they intend to rely on before the rescheduled hearing and said materials provided at this session would be formally entered into the record for the next date.

The hearing was adjourned until Feb. 19 at 2:00 p.m.