The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is making sure consumers know that the second round of stimulus checks are intended to go to people at nursing homes and assisted living facilities, not the facilities themselves.
The agency said some nursing homes tried to take the first round of stimulus checks. Residents on Medicaid were particularly vulnerable to not receiving money they were entitled to under the bill that funded the payments.
The FTC said it hopes the management teams at the facilities that tried to take the previous payments “have learned their lesson” this time around.
“But, just in case, let’s be clear: If you qualify for a payment, it’s yours to keep,” the agency said on its website. “If a loved one qualifies and lives in a nursing home or assisted living facility, it’s theirs to keep. The facility may not put their hands on it, or require somebody to sign it over to them. Even if that somebody is on Medicaid.”
Qualifying Americans are supposed to receive $600. The FTC says consumers who hear about a nursing home or assisted living facility “being grabby” about Economic Impact Payments should tell their state attorney general right away and then report it to the FTC.