Another Extendicare Class Action Lawsuit Filed over Nursing Home Neglect in Wisconsin

Nursing home operator Extendicare faces a third class action suit, this time filed on behalf of all residents of their nursing homes in Wisconsin. Similar Extendicare class action lawsuits have been filed in Washington and Minnesota, with all of the cases alleging that the company places profits over patient care by admitting residents that they are not properly equipped to handle.

The Wisconsin Extendicare lawsuit was filed Friday in the Circuit Court for Milwaukee County by one resident, but seeks class action status on behalf of all residents who have been treated at 26 different nursing homes operated by Extendicare in the state.

Extendicare is one of the largest nursing home operators in the United States and Canada, with as many as 226 homes in North America and over 30,000 beds.

The lawsuit alleges that Extendicare fraudulently advertises services that they are not capable of performing and admits ill residents without hiring the necessary staff to provide even adequate care.

According to a July 2008 article in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 20 out of the 26 Extendicare nursing homes in Wisconsin have been cited for at least one serious violation in care over the past three years and the nursing home operator has paid over $2.3 million to settle violations that led to the 2003 death of one Wisconsin resident.

Similar Extendicare class action lawsuits were filed in August 2008 in Washington and last month in Minnesota.

All of the cases highlight Extendicare’s “24/7 Extendicare Admission Policy”, which green flags individuals with serious medical conditions for immediate admission without proper assessment of the facility’s ability to meet the patient’s needs or the needs of other residents who are already living in the nursing home. This places elderly and ill individuals at risk for serious injury caused by nursing home neglect.

Extendicare has indicated that they intend to defend all of the nursing home class action lawsuits, and they have called the allegations incorrect and misleading.