Florida Needs Help

Skilled Nursing News had an article discussing the complaints of Florida’s nursing homes over the rising price of insurance premiums for real estate property. Many believe the risk of climate change and DeSantis’ policies are making things worse. With the increased frequency of hurricanes and labor shortages, insurance costs have risen to “unsustainable levels,” says Skilled Nursing News. Throughout the last five years, prices have skyrocketed.

Florida has 700 nursing homes. Only a total of 17 nursing homes have closed since 2018. Two of the closures were closed due to damages from Hurricanes, and additional closures included closing due to regulatory issues. According to Florida’s Agency for Healthcare Administration, insurance premiums have risen by 125%, with an average of 146 facilities per year closing during a five-year period ending in 2023. The financial pressure of this rise has left many operators struggling to stay in business, and some are not able to meet their debt obligations.

Additionally, violation citations have doubled in the last four years for Florida nursing homes. In 2022, nursing homes were cited 83 times for placing residents in danger, with more than half of these violations reflecting staff shortages and insufficient training. Florida’s long-term care facilities are still struggling due to labor shortages. Legal immigration would solve that issue but Florida is not friendly to immigrants.