87 Percent Of RI Nursing Homes At Risk Of Closure: Report

RHODE ISLAND — Rhode Island is the most endangered state for nursing home closures in the United States, according to a report from Clifton Larson Allen LLC, a national accounting and consulting firm.

The report, commissioned by the American Health Care Association, used Medicare data through September 2021 to assess the financial health of nursing homes across the country. According to the report, 95 percent of Rhode Island nursing homes were losing money, and 87 percent were deemed at "financial risk," meaning they are at high risk of closure.

"Rhode Island nursing homes have been hit by the perfect storm," said John Gage, the president of the Rhode Island Health Care Association. "The combination of chronic underfunding by Rhode Island Medicaid (a quarter of a billion dollars over the past decade), an historic workforce shortage (with 21%+ of nursing home workers lost in the past 2 years) and rampant inflation driving up the everyday costs to operate the homes, have created an existential threat to the future viability of Rhode Island nursing homes."

Patch reached out to the Rhode Island Department of Health for comment and will update this story if we hear back.

Lowlights of the report included:

• The percent of Rhode Island nursing homes at "financial risk" increased from 19 percent in 2019 to 87 percent Wednesday, a 68 percent increase.
• Since the start of the pandemic, five Rhode Island nursing homes have closed – displacing hundreds of elderly people from their homes.
• By the year 2027, there will not be enough nursing home beds in Rhode Island to serve those in need, without factoring recent or potential future closures.
• The Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that Rhode Island nursing homes lost 2,096 staff members since 2019, a 21.1 percent reduction in the state's nursing home workforce.