Months of grassroots fundraising, government advocacy and even a last-minute plan to transfer skilled nursing beds and eligible residents to a new assisted living memory care wing have not been enough to keep one historic Rhode Island nursing home open.
After more than 50 years of operation, Linn Health and Rehabilitation submitted plans to the state government to close on July 20.
Linn Health would be the seventh nursing home in Rhode Island to close since 2022. Some of its 48 current residents had relocated to the nursing home in the aftermath of those closures and now will have to move again, according to Rick Gamache, CEO of Aldersbridge Communities, the nonprofit organization that runs Linn Health
The East Providence nonprofit nursing home has faced similar problems to other nursing homes around the country — especially plagued by increasing costs of care and inflation in recent years. The nursing home was reliant on Medicaid reimbursements and losing more than $100,000 each month, according to an official report provided to McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.
The last-minute plan to transfer skilled nursing beds and open an assisted living memory care wing — “The Loft at Linn” — has so far stalled after hitting roadblocks in the certification process with the state government.
“State approval for our application for the memory care program is currently going much slower than expected, and time has nearly run out to cover our operational expenses. We can no longer afford to wait, so closure is the inevitable and responsible step,” said Gamache.
While skilled nursing appears set to close for good, the plans to gain state approval for The Loft at Linn are still in the works.
“Our plan going into this was to transition half of our community to assisted living memory care. We are still working with the state to obtain our license and certification,” Gamache told McKnight’s Thursday. “As soon as we can, we would operationalize this new program, allowing us to keep at least some of the residents who qualify, and our trained staff to provide specialized care for them.”
A traumatic closure
More than 100 staff currently work at Linn. Plans are in place to keep them working as long as possible and provide them with resources and job fairs to help their search for later employment.
The facility’s residents, meanwhile, will have to be moved to nearby nursing homes along with their belongings and medical records.
“It’s trauma,” Gamache told McKnight’s. “We broke the news to residents and families yesterday [May 22]. There was a lot of emotion, including sadness and anger. One resident asked how she would know if the next nursing home she moves to will stay open? We have residents who came to live with us here when another nursing home building recently closed. Residents are very concerned about staying local for their families to visit, and we will do our best to accommodate their wishes.”
Gamache said that they would welcome emergency funding from the government to stave off this reality, but that they’ve been told no such funding is available.
After months of advocacy from long-term care providers, Rhode Island’s government approved a 14.5% increase for Medicaid reimbursements, but those funds will not begin flowing to nursing homes until October 1.
“The cost of care has risen by nearly 35% since COVID,” Gamache said. “14.5% is significant, but it is too little, too late. We will continue to advocate for our residents and staff right up until the day we must close.”
