Two former Arizona Department of Health Services inspectors have been arrested in connection with a bribery scandal, following an undercover sting involving an assisted living inspection in Carefree. The former employees were named as Pearl Padilla and Dawn Rathburn, and the takedown was the result of an investigation conducted by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.
Undercover operation and alleged payments
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Court records obtained by 12News reveal a scam that reads like a criminal script, but it took place at a real Carefree facility.
According to the papers, Padilla conducted an unannounced inspection of the assisted care home and discovered numerous issues. Investigators claim she then agreed to leave those issues out of the official documentation in exchange for money.
According to court records, the facility paid a $2,000 down payment to Padilla during a meeting with an undercover agent, with the remaining $7,500 promised after the final inspection report was delivered. According to investigators, Padilla eventually wrote a report that declared the facility “clear of deficiencies.”
Rathburn acknowledged taking money to help the facility pass its inspection, according to investigators cited in the same documents.
State response and internal review
The Arizona Department of Health Services acted rapidly to disassociate itself from the alleged misconduct.
In a statement to 12News, the agency stated that it “has zero tolerance for fraud,” that it worked with the Attorney General’s Office, and that Padilla and Rathburn are no longer employed by ADHS.
The agency also stated that it is undertaking an internal study to investigate its policies and procedures designed to prohibit misbehavior and defend the integrity of the state’s licensing system. As part of that effort, ADHS announced an email address where anyone can submit concerns: [email protected], according to the release.
Why inspections matter
Licensing inspections and the survey findings that arise from them are the foundation of oversight in assisted living and comparable facilities. Regulators and families rely on those reports to identify red flags and keep vulnerable citizens safe, so charges that inspection findings were manipulated are a direct damage to public trust.
The Arizona Department of Health Services makes inspection records and enforcement actions available on its public AZ Care Check portal, allowing anybody to evaluate a facility’s compliance record. Families who are concerned about a provider can check the facility’s licensing and survey history on AZ Care Check.
What happens next
Padilla and Rathburn were arrested this week, after the Arizona Attorney General’s Office handed its findings to prosecutors. A formal charging decision is likely once prosecutors have finished studying the court records.
It is unknown whether any further ADHS employees or facility operators may face prosecution or when charging paperwork would be filed. The Attorney General’s Office oversaw the investigation and has yet to put charging information on its public website.
