Mississippi Nursing Homes: Violations, Fines and Worst Records

Across the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Mississippi comes in at 46th for overall nursing home ratings. Its homes average 2.7 stars; the national average is 3.0. Statewide, 51 facilities hold the lowest rating of one star, while 33 have earned the highest rating of five stars. CMS, the federal Medicare agency, publishes these numbers in its federal nursing home records, which span all 202 licensed Mississippi homes. Those records also place the state 11th highest nationally in per-home citations for harm or immediate danger (with immediate danger cited at least once at 53 facilities).

In Mississippi, harm-level citations were led by violations involving accident hazards and supervision; inspectors cited homes 95 times where failures caused harm or immediate danger. Not keeping a complete care plan was the most frequent violation statewide over the last three inspection cycles; inspectors recorded 376 citations. October 2023 also saw federal regulators issue the state's largest single fine, $232,114, to Marion Health and Rehab, located in Marion. Of Mississippi's nursing homes, for-profit companies run 157, and The Beebe Family, the state's largest chain, operates 24 of those facilities.

State inspection files are available to families on the MSDH Nursing Home Search site. Mississippi nursing homes can be searched by certification type, county, or city with that tool. Clicking View Documents pulls up annual survey reports, complaint investigations, and revisit reports for each facility. Every Mississippi facility's page on Medicare's Care Compare site, which replaced Nursing Home Compare, also provides its federal inspection reports. During Mississippi surveys, inspectors cite specific rules, and the Form CMS-2567 statement of deficiencies recording them is included on each home's listing there.

Anyone seeking a state inspection can call the Mississippi State Department of Health at 1-800-227-7308 or submit a report through its complaint page (complaint visits generated 23.9% of the state's citations). The Mississippi Department of Human Services offers a free resident advocate; families can phone 1-888-844-0041 for the Mississippi State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program. Mississippi's Adult Protective Services also takes reports at 844-437-6282 when a vulnerable adult in the state is suspected of suffering abuse or neglect.