Guides
Short, plain-language explanations of how the official records work — written by the The Care File editorial team from CMS regulations and manuals, and kept consistent with the data shown on every facility page. See our methodology for how these are produced.
How to read a nursing home inspection report
What surveys are, what F-tags mean, and how to read the A–L severity letters like an insider.
How nursing home star ratings really work
Why ratings are graded on a curve within each state, and why a facility with zero violations can still get 2 stars.
What to check when you tour a nursing home
A printable checklist of what to look at, smell, and ask during an in-person visit.
What the CMS abuse icon means — and what it doesn't
The exact criteria behind the federal abuse flag, its limitations, and what to do if you see one.
Medicare vs. Medicaid: who pays for nursing home care?
What each program covers, for how long, and how eligibility works when savings run out.
How to file a complaint about a nursing home
Who actually investigates complaints, how to file one that gets acted on, and what happens after.
The Special Focus program: nursing homes under extra scrutiny
What SFF and SFF-candidate status means, how facilities get in and out, and how to read it as a family.
How to read nursing home ownership records
Direct vs. indirect owners, chains, and why who owns a facility matters for care.
Private equity, REITs, and nursing home ownership
What the research says about investor-owned facilities, and what to check in the records.
Resident rights: transfers, discharges, and how to fight one
When a nursing home can and cannot make a resident leave, and the appeal rights families have.
How to read nursing home staffing numbers
Hours per resident per day, case-mix adjustment, weekend gaps, and turnover — what counts as enough.
Care plans: the document that runs your parent's daily care
What a care plan must contain, the family's role in care conferences, and red flags to watch.
Short-stay rehab vs. long-term care: two different decisions
Why a facility can be good at rehab and weak at long-term care, and which ratings match which stay.
Arbitration agreements in nursing home admission papers
What signing one means, why you can usually decline, and the federal rules that protect that choice.
Nursing home vs. assisted living: which level of care?
How the two differ in care, oversight, and cost — and why only one has federal inspection records.