A total of five nursing homes are now temporarily under state control after Arkansas officials expressed concerns about the facilities’ ability to pay staff members and provide for residents.
Arkansas’ Department of Human Services was appointed as a temporary receiver of three facilities on Thursday by circuit judges in three separate counties, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette reported. The state will have control over the facilities for a 30-day period.
The move comes after Arkansas officials filed a petition Monday to take over facilities in two other counties.
The state agency became aware of financial problems surrounding the nursing homes in September. It filed the petitions after questioning whether the facilities could financial maintain food, supplies and services, and meet minimum staffing levels and payroll.
The receivership status allows the state to ensure the nursing homes remain open, residents receive care and staff members are paid. Reliant Health Care has agreed to temporarily manage day-to-day operations of the facilities for the state.
All five facilities are licensed to companies jointly owned by Keith Head and Cathy Parsons, the report stated. Parsons filed a lawsuit against Head in Dec. 2018 that alleged “significant accounting irregularities” at their shared nursing homes.
The facilities have a combined 466 beds and 267 residents. No residents are expected to be moved because of the receivership designations.
Jerry Sharum, director of the Provider Services and Quality Assurance Division for the Arkansas DHS, said the agency “will stay at these facilities until we can be assured residents are getting the services they need, and the staff is getting the necessary supplies needed to care for the residents.”
