How to Check a Nursing Home or Assisted Living

Look up any Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing home to see its overall star rating plus separate ratings for health inspections, staffing and quality measures, and read inspection results.

When to use it: Use before touring and again before signing admission papers.

Star ratings are a starting point, not a guarantee; always read the inspection details and visit in person.

24/7, except some federal holidays

Compare Medicare-certified home health agencies by quality-of-patient-care star rating and patient survey ratings.

When to use it: Use when a hospital or rehab discharge plan includes home health and you get to pick the agency.

You have the right to choose your home health agency; the hospital must give you a list of options.

24/7, except some federal holidays

Compare hospitals by overall star rating, patient experience, infections, readmissions and other quality measures.

When to use it: Use when planning a surgery or deciding where your parent should go for non-emergency care.

24/7, except some federal holidays

CMS publishes a list of nursing homes with a persistent record of serious quality problems (about twice the average number of deficiencies), homes that recently graduated, homes that left Medicare and Medicaid, and candidates for the program. The list is updated about monthly; the August 26, 2026 update is the latest one found.

When to use it: Check before choosing a nursing home to see if it is, or recently was, a Special Focus Facility or candidate.

The list is updated periodically and can lag; CMS advises also checking with the ombudsman and state survey agency.

A free search tool built by the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica that lets you search the text of government nursing home inspection reports by keyword, facility, city or state, such as bedsores or falls.

When to use it: Use to dig into what inspectors actually found at a nursing home you are considering.

Data may lag behind the latest government release; confirm recent findings on Care Compare.

A plain-language explainer (July 2026) of what an inspection deficiency is and how scope (isolated, pattern, widespread) and severity (from minimal harm up to immediate jeopardy) are rated, so you can tell a paperwork issue from real harm.

When to use it: Read before you look at a nursing home's inspection report so you know which findings matter most.

Findings of actual harm or immediate jeopardy are the most serious; ask the facility what it changed afterward.

CMS lists every state survey agency, the state office that inspects nursing homes, hospitals, home health and hospice and investigates complaints, with its complaint webpage and phone number.

When to use it: Use when you need to file a complaint about care or unsafe conditions, or to get a facility's full inspection report.

Each state has its own number; if you are in immediate danger, call 911 first.

A national nonprofit that advocates for people living in nursing homes and assisted living. Its Consumer Center has free fact sheets on residents' rights, finding long-term care, getting quality care and starting a family council.

When to use it: Use when you want to know your parent's rights and how to push for better care.

Every state has a free Long-Term Care Ombudsman program whose staff advocate for residents of nursing homes, assisted living and board and care homes, resolve complaints and explain rights. This page lists each state's program.

When to use it: Call when you have a concern about your parent's care or rights in a facility, or before choosing one to ask what complaints they see.

Ombudsmen work for the resident, so they act on your parent's wishes when your parent can express them.

The national center that trains and supports the 53 state Long-Term Care Ombudsman programs. It publishes background on residents' rights and ombudsman services.

When to use it: Use to learn what an ombudsman can and cannot do; for a specific problem, contact your local ombudsman instead.

NORC does not handle individual complaints; it directs families to their local ombudsman.

Explains the rights guaranteed by the 1987 federal Nursing Home Reform Law, such as dignity, taking part in care decisions, privacy, refusing restraints and complaining without retaliation. Fact sheets come in many languages and Braille.

When to use it: Read before admission and whenever you feel a facility is not respecting your parent's choices.

The federal law covers nursing homes; assisted living rights come from state law and vary by state.

Guidance for families on starting or joining a family council, a group of residents' relatives who meet to raise concerns and push for improvements at a facility.

When to use it: Use once your parent has moved in and you want a stronger voice with facility management.

Medicare explains where complaints go: nursing home care and unsafe conditions go to your State Survey Agency, and quality-of-care problems such as a too-early hospital discharge or medication errors can go to your BFCC-QIO. Complaints can be made anonymously.

When to use it: Use when something has gone wrong with your parent's care and you want it formally investigated.

24/7, except some federal holidays