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File a Complaint with BSC
Complaints
The Bureau of Survey and Certification (BSC) accepts and processes complaints against various state licensed and federally certified health facilities, agencies, and programs.
To file a complaint against a state licensed or federally certified health facility, including nursing homes, hospitals, home health agencies, hospices, surgery centers, dialysis centers, and other providers, see information below.
Complaint Question & Answers
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Q1. I would like to report a concern about care or services that a person is receiving at a health or long term care facility. Who should I contact?
You can share your concern directly with:
- the provider
- facility leadership
- the provider's accrediting organization Complaints AO Contacts (cms.gov)
- State Long term Care Ombudsmen Home|MLTCOP
- File a complaint with the Bureau of Survey and Certification.
The Bureau of Survey and Certification accepts complaints against the following providers:
- Nursing Home or Skilled Nursing Facility
- Hospital/Long Term Care Unit
- Hospice Agency or Residence
- Hospital (including Psychiatric)
- Surgery Center
- Home Health Agency
- Dialysis Centers
- Rural Health Clinics
- Rural Health Clinics
- Federally Qualified Health Centers
- Outpatient Physical Therapy (OPT) Providers
- Comprehensive Outpatient Rehab Facilities (CORF)
- Portable X-ray Providers
- Providers offering Laboratory Services
- Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities
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Q2. What type of complaints can I file with the Bureau of Survey and Certification Complaint Intake Unit?
You can file a complaint when you have concerns about the care or services you or other individuals received or did not receive from health or long-term care providers. Concerns may include but are not limited to the following:
- Abuse
- Neglect
- Mistreatment
- Involuntary discharges or transfers
- Lack of staffing that impacts care
- Poor care
- Unsafe conditions
- Patient/ Resident Rights
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Q3. What types of concerns cannot be filed as a complaint with Bureau of Survey and Certification Complaint Intake Unit?
- Billing or insurance concerns Filing a Complaint with DIFS (michigan.gov)
- Health professionals’ license (i.e. physician, nurse, dentist, social worker) File a Complaint with BPL (michigan.gov)
- Adult Foster Care (AFC) providers or assisted living facilities File a Complaint (michigan.gov)
- Urgent Care Clinics
- Primary care outpatient providers
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Q4. What happens after I submit a complaint?
Within 7-10 business days of submitting the complaint, you will receive notice confirming your complaint was received. The notice will be sent to you based on your choice of communication which you enter as your preferred method of contact when filing the complaint. This could be by text, email or U.S. mail.
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Q5. When will my complaint be investigated?
For federally certified facilities, the Complaint Intake Unit is required to triage complaints based on guidelines set by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Based on assigned priority levels, investigations can occur as soon as 3 business days or deferred to the next onsite survey. Because our surveys are unannounced, we are unable to disclose the dates, times, and priorities of our scheduled surveys. As a complainant, your information, including your name, is kept confidential. A surveyor may attempt to contact you to gather additional information during the investigation. You will be notified when the investigation has been completed through your preferred method of contact. If you submitted the complaint anonymously, you would not receive any information regarding the outcome of the investigation. If you are not the complainant, or complainant’s legal guardian or resident representative, limited information will be provided to ensure confidentiality.
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Q6. What state rules or federal regulations do surveyors use to investigate a complaint?
Federal regulations are the requirements for a provider to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Many providers accept Medicare or Medicaid payments, so generally these requirements are used when investigating complaints.
There are some providers who do not accept Medicare and Medicaid and are licensed in Michigan under state rules. For a complaint filed against one of these providers, state rules are used when investigating complaints.
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Q7. What if a complaint is not related to a state rule or federal regulation?
The Bureau of Survey and Certification and/or Bureau of Community and Health Systems do not conduct investigations if the complaint raises issues that are outside the scope of federal regulation or state licensing requirements. A notice will be sent to the complainant which includes contact information for other agencies where the complaint may be filled.
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Q8. How do I obtain a copy of a complaint filed with the Bureau of Survey and Certification?
Request for copies of complaint information can be made through the department's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process at www.michigan.gov/larafoia. You may also contact FOIA at (517) 335-3327 or larafoiainfo@michigan.gov.
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Q9. If my complaint was investigated under federal authority, where can I get a copy of the investigation report?
If complaint is related to a federal regulation, the Bureau of Survey and Certification will produce a survey report (CMS 2567) with the results of the investigation. Some facility reports are publicly available at Search - Verify A License (state.mi.us)
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Q10. If the complaint was investigated under state authority, how do I get a copy of the report?
When you receive notice that the investigation has been completed, it will include the report with details about the items the provide needs to correct. Some facility reports are publicly available at Search - Verify A License (state.mi.us)
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Q11. I received a notification that references the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), but the complaint was filed with the State of Michigan. Could you please explain this?
Health and long-term care facilities in Michigan that are federally certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are investigated by the State of Michigan employees under the authority of CMS. The State of Michigan employees are surveying (inspecting) on behalf of CMS following the federal regulations.
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Q12. If the complaint is filed more than a year from the date of the incident, will it be investigated?
In most cases, an incident occurring more than 12 months prior to the complaint being filed cannot be investigated under federal authority. Incidents occurring more than 12 months ago may be forwarded to Bureau of Community and Health Systems for investigation under state authority.
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Q13. After the complaint investigation is complete, what will happen to the provider?
When the investigation is complete, the provider is allowed to correct any citations (a citation is a finding of non-compliance with the state or federal requirements) they may have received. Once corrections are made, a revisit investigation will be conducted to verify the corrections have been made. More than one revisit may be necessary for the provider to show the corrections have been made.
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Q14. Could the provider receive any penalties for the investigation findings?
For federal investigations, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) may determine that other penalties are warranted. Those penalties could include fines, not reimbursing the facility for newly admitted residents, and even possible termination from the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The type of penalty against the provider is at the discretion of CMS.
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Q15. I received a letter stating my complaint was investigated and the facility did not receive any citations, am I able to appeal the decision or have someone else investigate the incident?
No, but if the concern happens again, you can file another complaint for investigation.
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Q16. What happens during the onsite complaint investigation?
During the investigation, surveyors complete a thorough investigation which includes:
- document review including policies, procedures, and medical records
- interviews with other residents/patients and staff, and
- direct observations
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Q17. What happens if the facility has already corrected my concern by the time of the investigation?
The facility may make corrections as a result of the complaint before an investigation takes place. We will investigate to make sure the complaint has not happened again, the facility has taken steps to make sure it won't happen again, and that other patients/residents were not affected. As a result, the provider may not receive citations during the investigation if corrective action has already occurred.
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Q18. I left a message on the Complaint Intake Unit hotline. How long does it take to receive a returned call?
You will receive a response from our intake team within 1 business day.
Methods for Filing a Complaint
- Submit a complaint using the online form.
- Call the toll-free Complaint Hotline at 800-882-6006.
The Complaint Process
The goal of the complaint and investigation process is to protect the health, safety and welfare of residents, patients, and clients receiving care and services from state licensed and federally certified providers. BSC will only investigate allegations where a provider may be violating federal certification requirements. State licensing complaints will be referred to the Bureau of Community and Health Systems (BCHS) for investigation. If an allegation is substantiated, the goal is to bring that provider back into compliance when possible.
If a provider is both state licensed and federally certified, BSC will first investigate any allegation under its federal authority unless the allegation is specific solely to a state regulation requirement. As for off-site locations that might be affiliated with a federally certified provider, BSC can only investigate an off-site location that has been formally approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as a provider-based location of the certified provider. CMS approved provider-based locations may include other hospitals, surgery centers, or hospices operating under a federally certified provider’s CMS Certification Number (CCN). All other off-site locations, such as group practices or physician offices, would not be under the authority of BSC to investigate.
If you provide your contact information, you will receive a confirmation via mail or e-mail that your complaint has been received. If your allegation(s) warrant an investigation, your complaint will be assigned to a state surveyor who may attempt to contact you by phone if more information is needed. An unannounced on-site visit at the facility will likely be conducted and a follow up notice will be sent outlining our investigation findings. Please note the actual investigation and final findings can take several weeks, if not longer, to complete and process.
Contact
Department of Licensing & Regulatory Affairs
Bureau of Survey and Certification-Complaint Intake Section
PO Box 30838
Lansing, MI 48909
Phone: 800-882-6006
Email: LARA-BSC-Complaints@Michigan.gov
Michigan Long Term Care Ombudsman Program (advocates for residents in nursing homes, adult foster care homes, and homes for the aged) – Call 866-485-9393 or email MLTCOP@meji.org.