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Federal Investigators say the Florida Department of Elder Affairs is violating the Older Americans Act. And they’re giving the department 30 days to come up with a plan to fix their problems. As Whitney Ray tells us, those problems began when the state forced the state’s nursing home watchdog to resign.

It all began with a seemingly simple question. “Who owns the nursing homes?”

But someone didn’t want Brian Lee, the state’s former Long Term Care Ombudsman to know the answer. That was in January, by February, Lee was unemployed. Forced out, he says, for doing his job.

“February 7th, I got a phone call from my boss, I was out on sick leave, asking that I submit my resignation or I would be fired,” said Lee.

Lee’s job was to uncover corruption and neglect in Florida’s nursing homes, overseeing volunteers who listen to resident’s complaints and report their findings.

But once Lee, a 13 year veteran, began asking who owned the nursing homes he was in charge of investigating, he lost favor with his bosses. The governor’s office told the department it was time for him to go.

Now federal investigators are chastising the state. They issued a reporting claiming the state violated the Older Americans Act. Although Lee’s termination was a part of the report, the violation comes from keeping things from the media and interfering with volunteers who serve as advocates for nursing home residents.

“There should be no interference while the Ombudsman is being a watchdog and the report shows there was unlawful interference with the program,”

Lee sees the report as a small victory for patients. He’s has also filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the state.

A spokesperson for the Department of Elder Affairs called the report vague and said it lacks specific citations. They’re asking for the Federal Administration on Aging to clarify its report.