Can a nursing home resident put money in an outside bank and have an account at the nursing home?

Assuming he's fine mentally he can do whatever he likes with his money; but I agree that it's a bad idea for you to get involved when you can't the information you need. There should be someone at the nursing home who is able to support him with carrying out his wishes, or at least directing him to someone who can.

Yes he can have a bank account. My mom has one. Your problem might be in getting this set up with the signing of forms, etc. with the restrictions in place because of COVID19.

Anyone can have more than one bank account. However:
- A separate account shouldn’t be an attempt to hide money from Medicaid etc.
- The Nursing Home contract may have a clause about ‘no other accounts’, although it seems unlikely.
- The Nursing Home may want the monthly allowance paid into an account at the Nursing Home, so that they can deduct fees without having to present a bill (and sue if the bill isn’t paid). They should of course account for what is happening with the account, but may require a simple method to collect what is owed to them.
- If your friend simply wants to put this one check into a Savings Account, he should be able to phone a bank to request the paperwork to be posted to him, so that he can fill it out and post it back with the check. However Savings Bank interest is so low that there isn’t much to be gained.
- If your friend doesn’t trust the Nursing Home to hold his funds properly, it might be better not to get involved. Distrust can get a lot worse, and you don’t want to be part of it.

I cannot know what kind of payment he is making to the nursing home. If he is self pay and has adequate assets he can do whatever he wants with them. You cannot act for him unless you are his POA, and I wouldn't advise that unless you know exactly what you are doing; there are legal ramifications. It sounds as though he himself is not clear on what he is paying, or on his assets. He should discuss this with his own advisor, whether attorney or Fiduciary. My advise would be not to get involved in anything financial in any way.