The days of small, independent nursing homes are largely gone. In the past, a nurse or physician may expand their practice by purchasing a nursing home–or home for the aged, care homes, or convalescent homes–as they were often called. By operating a nursing home, they were able to care for a greater number of people. Those small, independent nursing homes have been replaced by large corporations funded by private equity firms.
There are more than 1.3 million residents living in the more than 15,000 nursing homes in the United States. 72% of nursing homes are now for-profit companies, and 66% of all nursing homes are now part of a corporate chain. The 10 largest chains own more than 10% of all nursing homes and operate in more than half the states. The top 30 nursing home chains account for more than 250,000 nursing home beds.
| America’s 30 Largest Nursing Home Chains | |||||
| Rank | Nursing Home Chain Name | Headquarters | Total Nursing Homes Owned | Total Nursing Home Beds | States Operated in |
| 1 | Genesis HealthCare Corp. | Pennsylvania | 357 | 41,977 | 26 |
| 2 | The Ensign Group | California | 219 | 23,172 | 13 |
| 3 | Life Care Centers of America | Tennessee | 209 | 27,179 | 28 |
| 4 | ProMedica Senior Care | Ohio | 162 | 22,973 | 17 |
| 5 | The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society | South Dakota | 156 | 10,504 | 22 |
| 6 | Consulate Health Care | Pennsylvania | 138 | 15,603 | 6 |
| 7 | Saber Healthcare Group | Ohio | 122 | Unreported | 7 |
| 8 | Sava SeniorCare | Georgia | 121 | 19,347 | 20 |
| 9 | Trilogy Health Services | Kentucky | 116 | 7,773 | 4 |
| 10 | Signature HealthCARE | Kentucky | 108 | 12,480 | 10 |
| 11 | PruittHealth | Georgia | 98 | 10,283 | 4 |
| 12 | Fundamental | Maryland | 83 | 9,743 | 8 |
| 13 | The Ciena Group / Laurel Health Care Co. | Michigan | 80 | 9,079 | 5 |
| 14 | American Senior Communities | Indiana | 78 | 8,746 | 1 |
| 15 | National Healthcare Corp. | Tennessee | 75 | 9,463 | 9 |
| 16 | Infinity Health Care Management | Illinois | 69 | 9,641 | 8 |
| 17 | CommuniCare Health | Ohio | 66 | Unavailable | 7 |
| 18 | Diversicare Healthcare Services | Tennessee | 62 | 7,329 | 9 |
| 19 | North Shore Healthcare | Wisconsin | 59 | 4,489 | 4 |
| 20 | EmpRes Healthcare Management | Washington | 55 | 4,834 | 8 |
| 21 | Foundations Health Solutions | Ohio | 55 | 5,623 | 1 |
| 22 | Mission Health | Florida | 51 | 4,196 | 8 |
| 23 | Nexion Health | Maryland | 50 | Unavailable | 4 |
| 24 | Athena Health Care | Connecticut | 46 | Unavailable | 3 |
| 25 | Avalon Health Care Group | Utah | 45 | 4,905 | 6 |
| 26 | Care Initiatives | Iowa | 44 | 2,967 | 1 |
| 27 | Prestige Care | Oregon | 44 | 3,397 | 5 |
| 28 | Five Star Senior Living | Massachusetts | 42 | 3,397 | 31 |
| 29 | Guardian Healthcare | Pennsylvania | 40 | 5,364 | 2 |
| 30 | National Health Care Associates | New York | 38 | 5,101 | 6 |
Nursing home corporations often go to great lengths to maintain the image of small, local facilities. They have charming names like The Gardens of …., [insert quant name], [local name] Manor, The Falls at [you name it], and so on. These are all designed at creating the impression that each nursing home is its own independent entity that is closely connected to the community. In reality, the overwhelming majority of these nursing homes are nothing more than a label applied by the corporation’s marketing team.
Questions About A Potential Nursing Home or Assisted Living Facility Lawsuit?
The trial attorneys of Michael Hill Trial Law are nationally recognized and handle exclusively cases against long term care facilities. Michael and his firm, Michael Hill Trial Law, handle cases across the country. If you have any questions about cases involving Communicare or any other nursing homes, assisted living facilities, or group homes, you can contact Michael Hill Trial Law at www.protectseniors.com, by sending an email to info@protectseniors.com, or by calling (800) 659-2712.
