Consumer Reports says bad nursing home care persists

Washington (AP) An analysis of state inspections finds not-for-profit nursing homes generally provide better care than those operated for profit.

Also, the analysis suggests independent nursing homes tend to provide better care than those managed by companies that run numerous nursing homes.

Consumer Reports says those conclusions are based on its evaluation of recent state inspection reports for some 16-thousand homes nationwide.

Only a fraction of nursing homes, regardless of whether they were a for-profit or non-profit, met Consumer Reports' standards for a quality nursing home. With for-profits, only about two percent were classified as likely to provide good care. The non-profits fared a little better at seven-point-three percent.

One reason independently-owned facilities might do better than those run by chain is that they tend to have more staff. The magazine found they also are more likely to use registered nurses.

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