Report: Nursing Home Closures in Iowa Exemplify General Pattern

Nursing home closures are not unusual. As the Center for Medicare Advocacy reported in July 2022, a 2009 study found that 8% of nursing facilities in operation in 1999 had closed during the next six years. Facilities were more likely to close if they provided poor quality care, had low occupancy, and had a small number of beds or were hospital-based. Medicaid rates were only one of many factors. Nursing home closures have also reflected older people’s general preference to remain home as long as possible.

A new report by the Center for Medicare Advocacy looks at the 17 nursing facilities that closed in Iowa in 2022 and finds that they generally reflect the same patterns as earlier closures.

• The full report is available at https://medicareadvocacy.org/report-nursing-home-closures-in-iowa-exemplify-general-pattern/