The largest nursing home in St. Louis, Missouri, unexpectedly shut down following a mass staff walkout due to not being paid, AP News reports. The care center’s abrupt closure left 170 residents without housing, and they were made to relocate to nearby care facilities.
The problem arose on Dec. 15, after more than 120 employees did not receive their biweekly paycheck. They were later informed that they would not be getting paid at all.
“They ran out of money to make payroll, caused this massive disruption, and just quickly moved forward with their goal, which was to shutter this facility,” said Lenny Jones, state director for Service Employees International Union Healthcare.
Marvetta Harrison, 59, a certified medical technician, spoke about the turmoil.
“This is real wrong,” she said. “I have worked in that building for 37 years.”
Northview Village Nursing Home was the city’s largest nursing center for years. Despite its long-standing reputation, the now-defunct facility had been inundated with a dozen federal violations since March 2021, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Though the federal agency did not share why Northview was fined so frequently and heavily, with fees ranging between $2,200 and more than $45,000, the care facility received a one-star rating out of five.
Northview also had been subjected to several investigations by the state health department since 2016. In one documented incident, a resident was able to exit out of an unmonitored door.
“Not only did they mistreat us, they mistreated the residents we take care of,” Harrison said.
The building began evacuating shortly after it was announced that the care center would be shutting down, and there was much disarray in the relocation of its residents, many of which did not have paperwork documenting their medical histories or necessary medication. Some residents’ families have also been kept in the dark regarding their loved ones’ whereabouts.
“They don’t know where he is,” said Alvin Cooper, whose 35-year-old son was recovering from a gunshot wound and drug addiction at Northview when it abruptly closed.
“I’ve burnt two tanks of gas going back and forth to that nursing home trying to find out what’s going on. I don’t know if he’s somewhere safe or what’s going to happen to him,” Cooper said.
Staff members also expressed their frustration over the timing of the closure. Cherie Ford, a certified nursing assistant at Northview Village, discussed the
issue with AP News, saying, “This was the only job I had and am facing eviction and no Christmas for my family. We were all looking forward to this check. This was our Christmas check to do our shopping, paying rent and other things.”RELATED CONTENT: Black Nurses Association Votes To Move 2024 Conference From ‘Anti-Black’ Florida