Iowa Capital Dispatch
Five of the Iowa nursing homes deemed by the government to be among the worst in the nation have met that criteria for at least two years. (Photo courtesy of the Iowa Department on Aging and Long-Term Care Ombudsman's Office)
Five of the Iowa nursing homes deemed by the government to be among the worst in the nation have met those criteria for at least two years, and one has qualified for four years, according to federal records.
The list of the nation’s worst-performing nursing homes, compiled by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is known as the special-focus facilities list, and is updated quarterly. The special-focus facilities are those deemed by CMS to have “a history of serious quality issues” and they are enrolled in a special program that is intended to stimulate improvements in their quality of care through increased oversight.