The County Legislature has voted to sell the Genesee County Nursing Home to Premier Healthcare Management, LLC, for $15.2 million at the Ways and Means Committee Meeting tonight.
The final details of the contract still have to be finished and signed by the legislature. As an alternative until the contract is finalized, the legislature has issued a letter of intent for the sale and transfer of Genesee County Skilled Nursing Facility and Genesee County Adult Home.
The letter of intent is needed so Premier can meet the Department of Health's application deadline for licenses and certificates of need. The entire process can take anywhere from six to nine months.
Premier owns several nursing home facilities and is a well known for-profit healthcare corporation in New York.
"There will be no reduction in the quality of care at our nursing home, which is our biggest concern,” Legislature Chairman Ray Cianfrini said. “The fact that they can do it at a profit is something I give them credit for. They have a different set of parameters that they work within that allows them to do that. This is not the only nursing home they own so they have the economy of scale they can use to make profits. That doesn't bother me at all."
Members of the legislature were impressed after touring their facilities and talking with residents.
Legislator Marianne Clattenburg said she believes Premier can provide advancements to the nursing home that the county couldn’t do.
“What struck me was their willingness to make investments,” Clattenburg said. “We saw one facility that had a multimillion-dollar dialysis unit installed after they had taken over the building.”
Finding a qualified buyer for the nursing home has been an extensive process.
“It was a long thorough process,” said Legislator Frank Ferrando Jr.. “Right from the beginning nothing happened rashly or quickly. Places were visited and questions were asked. We interviewed eight from a list of 14 that were original applicants. I’m very confident this is going to be a real plus for our community.”
When the contract is finalized, Premier plans to seek community input and will hold community meetings and forums for families and employees.
According to county officials, after debts are paid the county hopes to net $6.7 million from the sale.
