Delco health firm fined 249G by Pa.

A Delaware County-based health-care company that was sued last week in New York for allegedly defrauding hundreds of elderly customers is now in trouble back home.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced yesterday that Homeward Bound Services and its affiliates have reached a $249,000 settlement with his office's elder-abuse unit.

"Homeward Bound deliberately deceived elderly Pennsylvanians living on a fixed income by selling them a product they believed would keep them from entering a nursing home or assisted living facility," Corbett said yesterday in announcing the settlement.

"It is appalling to believe that a company could prey on the fears of some of our most vulnerable citizens to line its own pockets," he added.

Corbett said the company conned seniors into purchasing a non-medical, home health-care service program by claiming it was a long-term-care insurance policy. The company can avoid paying the $249,000 fine if it complies with a strict set of demands outlined by the state.

Officials from Homeward Bound, headquartered in Drexel Hill, could not be reached yesterday. A call placed to the company's 24-hour number for urgent matters led to a message saying the caller had "reached the hotmail of Homeward Bound Services."

Last week, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sued the company and obtained a restraining order to prevent it from selling its health plans there. Cuomo said the company entered into agreements with more than 600 New York seniors and didn't deliver on its promises.

Similar cases have been filed against the company in Florida, Washington, Illinois, Wisconsin and California, according to Shonna Clark, a spokeswoman for Corbett.

"They're pretty much doing this across the country, it seems," Clark said. *