Facility agrees to withdraw involuntary-discharge notice after failing to file required discharge plan

A hearing officer acting as the commissioner’s delegate told By the River residential care home to withdraw a Feb. 10, 2026 notice of involuntary discharge for resident Robert Palmer after the facility admitted it had not prepared the required written discharge plan and failed to provide it to the Department’s office.

The hearing officer entered three documents into the record at the start: the facility’s notice of involuntary discharge dated Feb. 10, 2026; an appeal filed by Florence Mancini, conservator for Palmer; and the notice scheduling this hearing. Long-term care ombudsman Miss Butler confirmed she received the discharge notice on Feb. 10 and that her office had been in contact with the conservator to assist with the appeal.

The hearing officer questioned facility representative Miss Debacco about the facility’s compliance with the statutory discharge-plan requirement. Miss Debacco said she submitted a list of possible alternative placements through the facility portal when filing the notice but acknowledged those placements were not acceptable to the conservator and that the facility "did not write anything up formally." Miss Debacco later stated, "I failed to write a formal discharge plan," when the hearing officer pressed her on documentation.

The hearing officer read a statutory requirement into the record (section 19-a-535, subsection c as cited at the hearing) that the facility must prepare a discharge plan documenting the resident’s individual needs, provide it to the resident within seven days after a notice of transfer or discharge, and submit it to the commissioner at or before the hearing. The office stated it had not received such a plan in this case.

Faced with that omission, the hearing officer offered the facility an option to withdraw or rescind the notice and reissue it in compliance with the law, including issuing the discharge plan within seven days and ensuring the Department’s delegate receives a copy. Miss Debacco agreed to withdraw the notice. The hearing officer warned that failure to comply could result in a written decision adverse to the facility.

The hearing officer also reminded the conservator that, if the facility reissues a compliant notice, the same appeal timelines will apply to Robert Palmer and his conservator, including a 10-day period to file an appeal. Participants closed the hearing with acknowledgments that recent changes in the law have changed procedural practices and with requests for continued communication between the facility, the conservator, and the ombudsman.

The immediate outcome is that By the River will withdraw the Feb. 10 notice and reissue a new notice with a written discharge plan; the conservator may file a timely appeal after reissuance. The record does not show whether the reissued notice or any further appeals have been filed.