Florida nursing homes care for more than 700,000 people daily. But soon, The Gardens at DePugh Nursing Center in Winter Park will close its doors. Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements are not keeping up with the cost to provide care, according to Administrator Liz Barton, who told WESH 2 News, “The revenue was not matching the expenses.” Nursing home board chair Rick Baldwin added, “It doesn’t sound like government reimbursement rates are going to go up anytime soon.” The closing of the Gardens at DePugh Nursing Center is part of a trend in Florida and nationwide that has seen these properties either redeveloped or bought by investment firms.A new report from AARP shows 425 Florida nursing homes, 60%, had ownership changes between 2019 and 2023 — 156 of them were bought by private equity firms.Citing Centers for Medicare and Medicaid ratings, AARP concludes there has been a 50% reduction in care at those homes. Jeff Johnson is AARP’s Florida director, and Dr. Lindsay Peterson is a long-term care expert from USF who did the research.Both shared details of the report with WESH 2 News. They say the shift in ownership was triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Occupancy went way down in many nursing homes because they could not accept new residents and they were losing other residents,” Peterson said. In 2022, Florida lawmakers reduced the number of hours some staff, like certified nursing assistants, were required to work, a move intended to create more flexibility but criticized by AARP.New nursing home ownership by non-traditional operators worries the group even more.“In a nursing home where you are talking about the frailest of Floridians, those sorts of changes can be really detrimental to health and outcomes,” Johnson said. A review of CMS’s website reveals just 10 of 64 nursing homes in greater Orlando earn five stars. But the nursing home lobbying group, Florida Health Care Association, argues, the rating system doesn’t account for Florida’s diverse requirements for medical, social, behavioral and therapeutic care. FHCA Spokesperson Kristen Knapp said, “Because CMS does not account for these specialized roles in its staffing calculations, some providers began experiencing lower ratings. For residents and their families, what matters most is personalized, hands-on care, not ownership structures.” AARP recommends researching nursing homes, especially patient outcomes, before deciding.
Florida nursing homes care for more than 700,000 people daily. But soon, The Gardens at DePugh Nursing Center in Winter Park will close its doors.
Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements are not keeping up with the cost to provide care, according to Administrator Liz Barton, who told WESH 2 News, “The revenue was not matching the expenses.”
Nursing home board chair Rick Baldwin added, “It doesn’t sound like government reimbursement rates are going to go up anytime soon.”
The closing of the Gardens at DePugh Nursing Center is part of a trend in Florida and nationwide that has seen these properties either redeveloped or bought by investment firms.
A new report from AARP shows 425 Florida nursing homes, 60%, had ownership changes between 2019 and 2023 — 156 of them were bought by private equity firms.
Citing Centers for Medicare and Medicaid ratings, AARP concludes there has been a 50% reduction in care at those homes.
Jeff Johnson is AARP’s Florida director, and Dr. Lindsay Peterson is a long-term care expert from USF who did the research.
Both shared details of the report with WESH 2 News. They say the shift in ownership was triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Occupancy went way down in many nursing homes because they could not accept new residents and they were losing other residents,” Peterson said.
In 2022, Florida lawmakers reduced the number of hours some staff, like certified nursing assistants, were required to work, a move intended to create more flexibility but criticized by AARP.
New nursing home ownership by non-traditional operators worries the group even more.
“In a nursing home where you are talking about the frailest of Floridians, those sorts of changes can be really detrimental to health and outcomes,” Johnson said.
A review of CMS’s website reveals just 10 of 64 nursing homes in greater Orlando earn five stars. But the nursing home lobbying group, Florida Health Care Association, argues, the rating system doesn’t account for Florida’s diverse requirements for medical, social, behavioral and therapeutic care.
FHCA Spokesperson Kristen Knapp said, “Because CMS does not account for these specialized roles in its staffing calculations, some providers began experiencing lower ratings. For residents and their families, what matters most is personalized, hands-on care, not ownership structures.”
AARP recommends researching nursing homes, especially patient outcomes, before deciding.
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