A daughter who signed a contract admitting her mother to a nursing home breached the contract when she failed to use her mother's assets to pay for services and instead made improper transfers for Medicaid planning purposes and hired a personal companion. Sunrise Healthcare Corp. v. Azarigian (Conn. App. Ct., No. AC 22959, May 20, 2003).
On December 4, 1995, Vicki M. Azarigian signed an admissions contract allowing her mother, Gloria Wood, to be admitted to a nursing home operated by Sunrise Healthcare Corp. The contract required Ms. Azarigian to use her mother's assets to pay for services rendered. In January 1996, Ms. Azarigian, acting as her mother's attorney-in-fact, executed several transfers from Mrs. Wood's accounts and also made payments for a private companion to look after Mrs. Woods. In March, 1997, Ms. Azarigian applied for Medicaid benefits on her mother's behalf. The Connecticut Department of Social Services denied the application, in part because of the earlier transfers. Ms. Azarigian ceased making payments to the nursing home from January 1, 1997 until Mrs. Wood's death on February 27, 1998.
Sunrise filed a complaint against Ms. Azarigian for breach of contract, alleging that as her mother's attorney-in-fact and "responsible party" under the contract, she had failed to take the necessary steps to ensure her mother's Medicaid eligibility and to use her mother's assets to pay for services rendered by Sunrise. The trial court ruled in Sunrise's favor, finding that Ms. Azarigian had breached the contract in making the aforementioned disbursements. Ms. Azarigian appealed, arguing the disbursements were for her mother's welfare and were required by the contract. She noted that her mother had established a pattern of similar transfers prior to her residency at the nursing home. Ms. Azarigian also argued that she was not liable for Mrs. Wood's expenses because she was acting merely as Mrs. Wood's agent.
The Appellate Court of Connecticut affirms, agreeing with the trial court that the disbursements of assets were not authorized by the contract. Although Mrs. Wood may have derived some pleasure from the disbursements, the court holds that they were not for her basic necessities. The court also concludes that Ms. Azarigian expressly assumed liability under the contract when she signed it as the "responsible party" and that the obligations of a "responsible party" extend "well beyond" her role as her mother's agent.
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