(FOX40.COM) — A chain of nursing homes has agreed to settle a lawsuit that claimed the California-based company violated state staffing laws, the attorney general’s office announced Tuesday.
The case, filed last year, argued Sweetwater Care Resource, LLC and its affiliates failed to adequately staff its skilled nursing facilities, leading to delayed care and harm to patients.
A judge accepted the agreement last week. The deal calls for Sweetwater to pay $12.5 million in penalties and $2.5 million toward both improving staffing and securing a compliance monitor, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said. The company also must operate its 17 facilities under that independent monitor for the next three years.
“Our elders deserve care that is safe, dignified and consistently held to the highest standards,” Bonta said. “When those entrusted with the care of elderly residents fail to live up to these standards and put Californians in harm’s way, we take action.”
He called the settlement a “step in the right direction” for Sweetwater and vowed to “continue to hold accountable those who put profits over patients.”
Under California law, skilled nursing facilities must provide a minimum of 3.5 direct care service hours per resident day from nurses and aides, 2.4 of which must come from certified nurse assistants. But from 2021 to 2024, the attorney general’s office discovered “systemic understaffing” including more than 14,000 instances of sub-minimum staffing.
Sweetwater did not respond to FOX40’s request for comment.
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