The biggest U.S. nursing-home company said low occupancy and expenses due to the pandemic led to a deepening loss in the quarter ending Sept. 30, and it is working on restructuring efforts after warning in August about its ability to continue as a going concern.
Genesis Healthcare Inc.’s quarterly results highlighted the continued financial pressure on nursing homes from Covid-19, which is showing signs of increasing again amid a national surge in cases. An August survey by the American Health Care Association, an industry group, found that 55% of nursing homes were operating at a loss, and 72% said they couldn’t sustain operations another year at the current pace. Some facilities have shut their doors in recent months.
Long-term-care facilities in the U.S. have been tied to more than 88,000 Covid-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to a Wall Street Journal tally of recent state, local and federal data. Over time, long-term care deaths have tended to represent around 40% of all Covid-19 deaths.
Genesis saw its facilities in several states hit hard in the spring and early summer. The company said it hasn’t yet seen a major increase in infections with the latest national rise, but it is preparing for a possible next wave. Genesis leases, owns and manages 337 nursing homes around the country, including some that are joint ventures.
The company, based in Kennett Square, Pa., said occupancy in the third quarter was showing glimmers of improvement, but even after an infusion of federal and state government aid its net loss for the third quarter was $62.8 million, or 55 cents a share, on revenue of $938.7 million. That compared with net income of $46.1 million, or 42 cents a share, on revenue of $1.1 billion in the third quarter of 2019.
