Alabama Nursing Homes: Violations, Fines and Worst Records

Of Alabama's 224 nursing homes, for-profit companies run 189, 27 are non-profit, and government agencies own the other eight. Of those facilities, 167 are controlled by corporate chains, with Nhs Management the largest, operating 33 homes statewide. These Alabama records appear in the public data files on nursing homes kept by CMS, the federal Medicare agency. During the past three inspection cycles, facilities statewide received 2,269 citations, and 178 of those citations found immediate danger or harm to residents. The most common violation in Alabama was infection prevention and control, cited 274 times, with food storage and kitchen safety next at 270.

Measured against the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Alabama holds the 43 spot for citations per home tied to harm or danger. For fines per home, it holds 45. Regulators have issued $2,758,515 worth of federal fines since September 2023, spread over 35 homes in the state. In March 2025, the largest fine, $392,125, went to Magnolia Ridge in Gardendale. In Alabama, 46.9% of nursing staff left within a year, compared with 45.8% nationally. Total nurse staffing there averages 3.88 hours for every resident day; the national average is 3.86 hours.

The Alabama Department of Public Health, Bureau of Health Provider Standards provides the Health Care Facility Deficiencies portal for state inspection documents. Families can search licensed nursing homes there and open survey deficiency documents. From each home's page on Medicare Care Compare (formerly Nursing Home Compare), the federal inspection reports also open. These cover all 224 of the homes in the state and are written on a Form CMS-2567 statement of deficiencies.

To report concerns about care in an Alabama facility, call the Alabama Department of Public Health, Bureau of Health Provider Standards at 1-800-356-9596, or use the state complaint page for health providers. In the state, 17.5% of all nursing home citations come from complaint visits. Help is also available to residents and relatives through the Alabama Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program, part of the Alabama Department of Senior Services, at 334-242-5753, and suspected abuse can be reported to Alabama Adult Protective Services at 1-800-458-7214.