LAWRENCE, Ind.— The state and federal government cited a Lawrence mental health facility following a WRTV Investigation into its healthcare practices.
Options Behavioral Health System is facing ten pending lawsuits from former patients and their families alleging the facility held them against their will and is operating “like a prison.”
Records show inspectors with the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), working in conjunction with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) visited Options Behavioral Health on November 21, 22 and 25, 2024.
WRTV Investigates first raised questions about Options Behavioral Health in October 29 when we introduced you to Frankfort father, Craig Inman.
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Inman filed a complaint with the Indiana Department of Health in October alleging his daughter, who was 12 at the time, was heavily sedated by Options staff—also known as chemical restraint.
“I’ve taken a lot of action,” said Inman. “When you hurt my child, I have no choice but to fight back.”
He also filed a lawsuit alleging Options Behavioral Health staff held his daughter against her will without any medical basis.
"This is a 13-year-old girl who was suicidal and went to a hospital for help and got tortured and held hostage,” said Inman. “They should not be able to do this to children.”
IDOH inspectors found multiple violations of federal regulations at Options Behavior Health during their November visits to the facility, records show.
- Improper restraint and seclusion. The state noted the facility sedated (used chemical restraint) on Inman’s daughter but failed to show staff tried less restrictive methods such as “verbal deescalating, relaxation activity, voluntary time out, redirection and/or distraction.”
- Not promoting or protecting patient rights. The state called it a “systemic problem” and noted staff failed to conduct a face-to-face evaluation of the patient within one hour of initiation of restraint; failed to document the least restrictive methods of restraint prior to administering a chemical restraint and failed to document the patient’s reaction to a chemical restraint
- Improper supervision and missing documentation. The state noted facility nursing staff failed to complete incident reports for patient assault, physical confrontation, and/or chemical restraint for Craig Inman’s daughter. Inspectors found other instances of missing documentation, including injections not documented in the patient’s medical records.
The state interviewed Options Behavioral Health System’s “Director of Quality” on November 22 and they confirmed nursing staff did not complete assault or restraint incident reports for Inman’s daughter, but should have.
Craig Inman said the lack of documentation stood out to him the most about the state’s inspection report.
“The paperwork and how they handled themselves, and they say they are professionals,” said Inman. “They still won’t even apologize. We’ve received no apology.”
According to a February 5 letter from IDOH to the Inmans, Options Behavioral Health submitted a plan of correction that identifies how they will fix the problems and prevent them from happening in the future.
The mental health facility was not fined by IDOH or CMS.
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“We will continue to monitor compliance with these requirements when we complete our required state and/or federal surveys of the facility,” read the IDOH letter. “The complaint is now closed.”
Craig Inman said it’s not enough.
“There’s zero accountability,” said Inman. “I haven’t seen a single bit of accountability from Acadia. The red flag has been raised when you hurt my family and that’s not including all the innocent people who have been hurt."
Acadia Healthcare is the parent company of Options Behavioral Health.
WRTV Investigates contacted them about the IDOH inspection report and a spokesperson provided the following statement on behalf of Acadia Healthcare.
“While we cannot discuss specific patient situations due to patient privacy laws, the dignity and well-being of our patients is at the center of all we do, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for behavior that could endanger our patients and staff. As is our protocol, Options actively collaborates with our regulators to ensure ongoing compliance with regulatory and clinical care requirements.“We understand the trust and responsibility placed in us to uphold the highest standards, and Options continues to serve patients and the community by providing the very latest in evidence-based behavioral healthcare.”
Craig Inman says his daughter still struggles with what happened at Options Behavioral Health.
“It’s not going away for Options,” said Inman. “They’re still open. They didn’t get in any trouble."
The IDOH’s November 2024 inspection report for Options Behavioral Health is not posted online as of March 21.
“It definitely should be,” said Inman.
We asked IDOH and CMS about why the report isn’t published online.
As of our March 21 deadline, we have not received an explanation for why the inspection report is not public record.
A CMS spokesperson said Options Behavioral Health System is now compliant with all federal requirements for participation in the Medicare program.
CMS also provided WRTV with a copy of the facility's corrective action plan.
You can search for healthcare facility inspection reports here: Health Care Providers Consumer Reports
But keep in mind, another state agency, the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) also inspects mental health facilities, but those are not posted online.
In fact, if the public wants to view inspection reports for a mental health hospital, they have to request copies through a formal records request under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act.
It took WRTV Investigates four months to receive inspection reports for Options Behavioral Health. We requested them on July 15, 2024 and received two reports on November 13, 2024.
The last two FSSA inspection reports for Options Behavioral Health were completed in July 2023 and July 2024 – so WRTV anticipates FSSA will do its next inspection this summer.
“I’d like to see the state come in and take a more active role so companies can’t come in and do this to their own citizens,” said Inman. “It’s crazy.”
Inman said the Indiana Attorney General’s Office also contacted him and they’re investigating.
“There’s hopefully a lot more to come,” said Inman.
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“We are aware of complaints regarding Options Behavior Health and are making the appropriate inquiries,” an Attorney General’s Office spokesperson said in an email to WRTV.
WRTV Investigates also contacted FSSA.
“Both the Indiana Department of Health and Indiana Family and Social Services Administration's Division of Mental Health and Addiction can investigate complaints received by each agency,” said FSSA spokesperson James Vaughn in an email to WRTV. “ To be licensed, Private Mental Health Institutions must meet Indiana Administrative Coderequirements. As the licensing body, DMHA may conduct annual inspections and investigates all complaints and incidents reported at licensed Private Mental Health Institutions to determine if there was non-compliance of Indiana Administrative Code.”
WRTV Investigates also found to file a complaint against an Indiana mental health facility, you can’t do it online. You have to call 1-800-901-1133.
You can contact WRTV Investigates Kara Kenney at kara.kenney@wrtv.com
