FTC Warns Nursing Homes Not to Take People’s Stimulus Checks

The Federal Trade Commission has clarified something for nursing homes and assisted-living facilities: their residents’ stimulus checks belong to them, not the facility, so you can’t take it from them.

Reportedly, some facilities have requested or required that people on Medicaid sign over the checks.

Don’t do that. As the FTC’s notice explains, these checks are, by law, personal tax credits. They do not count toward Medicaid or any federal benefits program, so you have no claim to them. Neither the facility nor the government, for that matter, may take them away, so if you have, you should give it back.

The notice advises residents and their loved ones to contact their state attorney general’s office as well as file a complaint with the FTC.