Nursing Home Lawsuit Against Extendicare Moved to Federal Court with Additional Allegations

An Extendicare nursing home class action suit filed this summer on behalf of all residents at Extendicare homes throughout the state of Washington, has been moved to federal court and additional allegations have been added to the complaint. The new allegations indicate that Extendicare, which operates nearly 200 nursing homes throughout the United States, disregarded the safety of residents to increase profits.

On August 21, 2008, the original nursing home lawsuit was filed in King County Superior Court in Washington against Extendicare Homes, Inc., Fir Lane Terrace Convalescent Center Inc. and all Extendicare nursing homes in the state. The suit sought class action status on behalf of all residents who resided at any of the Extendicare nursing homes between July 1, 2004 and July 1, 2008.

The Extendicare suit alleged that the rights of residents were violated by substandard care provided at the homes, and also claimed that Extendicare falsely advertised that they would provide high quality skilled nursing care, despite the fact that tight budgets forced the homes to operate without adequate staff, placing all residents at risk of suffering a nursing home injury.

On Thursday, October 2, 2008, a revised complaint was filed in the federal U.S. District Court for the Western Washington Division in Seattle. Extendicare Health Services, Inc., which is the parent company for all Extendicare nursing homes, was added as a defendant in the suit.

The expanded Extendicare lawsuit includes new allegations that the homes admitted residents to boost their profits, with no regard for their conditions or whether facilities were able to provide the type of care the resident requires. The complaint also alleges that admission agreements Extendicare required residents to sign, violated state law by waiving liability for nursing home injury lawsuits and property loss.

Extendicare Homes Inc. is a subsidiary of Extendicare Health Services, Inc. (EHSI), which operates 191 senior care homes with 19,200 beds, throughout the United States.

There are 16 Extendicare homes in Washington, and they have repeatedly received citations from the Washington Department of Social Health Services for providing poor care. In 2007, one of their Washington nursing homes had 35 deficiencies and another had 30 in 2006. The statewide average for nursing homes in Washington is only 9 deficiencies per year.