Cold Spring Hills nursing home: AG requests independent health monitor be removed

The State Attorney General’s Office is asking a Nassau judge to remove Cold Spring Hills Center for Nursing & Rehabilitation's court-appointed independent health monitor after her Albany-based consulting firm was purchased, in part, by a law firm representing some of the owners of the embattled Woodbury nursing home in its bankruptcy court proceeding.

In a May 27 court filing, Christina Pinnola, special assistant attorney general in the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, asked Nassau State Supreme Court Judge Lisa Cairo to schedule a hearing to discuss removing Lisa Wickens-Alteri, president and founder of Capital Health Consulting LLC, "due to its failure to be independent since at least December 31, 2024."

On Jan. 1, Abrams Fensterman, LLP announced that it now indirectly owns 50% of Capital Health Consulting. The law firm, which has offices in Lake Success, has represented Benjamin Landa and his daughter Esther Farkovits, minority owners in the nursing home, during Cold Spring Hills' bankruptcy proceedings.

A spokesman for Attorney General Letitia James declined to comment. Capital Health Consulting did not respond to requests for comment.

In a May 28 letter to Cairo, Alyssa Friedman, a partner at Abrams Fensterman and the law firm's health care fraud chair, said, "we have never had any concerns regarding Ms. Alteri’s independence. She continues to operate Capital Health Consulting autonomously and does not consult the law firm regarding Cold Spring Hills."

In a Feb. 18 announcement about the purchase of her consulting firm, Wickens-Alteri said the company's shared mission will be to "empower health care providers to deliver the highest quality of care while staying ahead of regulatory and operational challenges."

On April 12, 2024, Cairo ordered the installation of Wickens-Alteri as the nursing home's independent health monitor as part of the resolution of a contentious lawsuit between the AG's office and Cold Spring Hills that also included a more than $2 million financial penalty to the nursing home's owners.

James charged in the suit that the facility neglected resident care and skirted state laws through a fraudulent business setup designed to enrich the owners. 

Wickens-Alteri, a former registered nurse at an upstate nursing home, spent eight years as deputy director of the Office of Health Systems Management, the policy, regulatory, surveillance and enforcement arm of the State Health Department, which has oversight of nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

A State Health Department spokeswoman declined to comment on the attorney general's application, citing pending litigation.

The attorney general's office initially recommended Wickens-Alteri for the position as independent health monitor, which is focused on improving resident care, maintaining sufficient staffing and ensuring that state and federal guidelines are followed. 

"Ms. Alteri has been instrumental in stabilizing patient care at Cold Spring Hills," Friedman wrote in her letter to Cairo. "She remains available around the clock and is relied upon by facility staff."

James' office has not publicly criticized Wickens-Alteri's performance in the role but has suggested in court records that she can't be independent following the firm's purchase by Abrams Fensterman.

Cold Spring Hills is now under the control of Eliezer Jay Zelman, the nursing home's temporary receiver, who is expected to eventually purchase the 588-bed facility.

The nursing home's ownership group, led by Bent Philipson and his son Avi Philipson, remain in place until the Health Department approved the sale of the facility.

The receivership agreement, which was approved by the State Health Department, stipulates that Wickens-Alteri continue to serve as independent health monitor until Zelman consummates the sale of the nursing home.

Schuyler Carroll, an attorney for Cold Spring Hills in its bankruptcy proceeding, declined to comment while Zelman and his attorney did not respond to requests for comment.

It was not immediately clear who, if anyone, would take over as the nursing home's independent health monitor if Wickens-Alteri was removed.

Earlier this year, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean H. Lane, who is overseeing the Cold Spring Hills proceedings, appointed David Crapo, a New Jersey-based attorney, as the facility's patient care ombudsman.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.