Extendicare Nursing Home Lawsuit Over False Advertising Dismissed

A class action lawsuit over the quality of care at Extendicare nursing homes in Wisconsin, which alleged that the nursing home operator placed profits over patient care by admitting residents that they were not properly equipped to handle, has been dismissed by a judge in Millwaukee County Circuit Court. It is the third such Extendicare class action lawsuit involving fraudulent advertising claims to be dismissed.

Judge Dennis Moroney rejected the case, which sought class action status on behalf of all Wisconisin Extendicare nursing home residents between 2005 and 2008, as being too vague and barred the plaintiff from resubmitting their claim later; saying that amending the complaint would not help make it any more viable, according to a press release issued by Extendicare.

Extendicare is one of the largest nursing home operators in the United States and Canada, operating 264 senior care centers in North America, with a total of just under 30,000 residents.

The nursing home lawsuit alleged that Extendicare fraudulently advertised services that they were not capable of performing and admitted ill residents without hiring the necessary staff to provide adequate care.

The Wisconsin case, as well as other Extendicare class action suits filed in Washington and Minnesota, highlighted the company’s “24/7 Extendicare Admission Policy,” which green flagged individuals with serious medical conditions for immediate admission without proper assessment of the facilities ability to meet the patient’s needs or the needs of other residents who were already living in the nursing home. The plaintiffs claimed that this placed elderly and ill individuals at risk for serious injury caused by nursing home neglect.

A July 2008 investigation by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel found that 20 out of the 26 Extendicare nursing homes in Wisconsin had 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. Extendicare homes in Washington and Minnesota had also been cited for serious violations.