Brius owner Shlomo Rechnitz is expanding his nursing home empire beyond California’s borders as California regulators have effectively shut down the company’s expansion due to Brius’ repeated violations of nursing home laws.
In September 2014, the California Department of Public Health – which licenses and regulates California nursing homes – blocked Brius from obtaining a license to operate a nursing home in Butte County. Nearly two years later, state regulators went further when they blocked Rechnitz from obtaining licenses to operate five California nursing homes – four in Butte County, and one in Orange County – due to the company’s “systemic” violations of residents’ rights and nursing home laws.
With regulators currently blocking Brius from expanding in California, the company may look to continue to expand in other states. This possibility has not escaped the attention of advocates. In August, the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) wrote to nursing home regulators in both Nevada and Texas to alert them of Brius’ track record and the actions recently taken by California regulators.
Following the company’s founding in 2004, Brius rapidly acquired dozens of nursing homes in California and is now the state’s largest nursing home operator. According to the Sacramento Bee, Brius operates approximately 90 nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and roughly 1 of every 14 nursing home beds in California.
The company’s repeated violations of state law, however, have resulted in dozens of charges, violations, and investigations by a long list of government agencies including the California Department of Public Health, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the California Attorney General, the Internal Revenue Service, and the FBI.