California Firm Defrauded Elderly Citizens, Suit Charges

Fifty-nine California senior citizens claim Senior Care Advocates defrauded them of thousands of dollars apiece by charging to "qualify" them for Medi-Cal, California's version of Medicaid, and allegedly promising that the seniors would receive free medical care without having to give up their homes and other assets.

They say the Roseville-based company sent people to their homes and charged them $5,000 to $25,000 apiece for a "service" that was "purely illusory, unnecessary and a fraud.”

The suit charges that SCA's representatives called on elderly residents and their caregivers in their homes and told them the company could help them qualify for Medi-Cal, meaning that they would have access to a nursing home at no additional cost to them, other than SCA's fee, which ranged from $5,000 to $25,000. The price allegedly varied depending on how much the salesperson thought he could get.

In fact, the suit alleges, most of the plaintiffs already qualified for Medi-Cal and did not need any assistance from SCA.

“What SCA 'sold' the plaintiffs for many thousands of dollars was purely illusory, unnecessary and a fraud,” the suit charges.

The suit was filed by Mark A. Redmond of Attorneys Against Abuse of Elders, a Sacramento firm that specializes in elder law issues.

Sacramento's KCRA-TV reported in November 2009 that the California Attorney General sued SCA on similar charges.