Sale of Forest City Enterprises' Assisted Living Communities Raises Concerns

CLEVELAND, July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Today's announcement by Forest CityEnterprises Inc. on its sale of 12 assisted living properties to AtriaSenior Living Group raises serious concerns about care and staffing atthese facilities. But today's sale is about more than real estate. Atria Senior Living is one of the nation's largest assisted andindependent living companies. Seniors and their loved ones rely on thesefacilities for safe, quality care. Yet a recent report by the Campaign toImprove Assisted Living and SEIU Healthcare reveals a nationwide trend ofserious resident care problems including medication errors, low staffing,residents wandering away, and inadequate emergency planning. In fact, Atriahas been cited more than 1,000 times for serious resident care problems. The report, the first of its kind in the industry, showed a completepicture of the problems at this for-profit chain. Residents have reportedpaying thousands of dollars a month for their small rooms, yet low staffingand care problems persist. The sale properties, operating under the name of Sterling Glen, include11 facilities in the greater New York City area and one in Florida. AtriaSenior Living is based in Louisville, KY and owns or operates more than 120assisted- living communities in 27 states. The Campaign is calling for Atria to make a real investment infront-line care by staffing-up, increasing worker training, and loweringworker turnover. Representatives from the Campaign are available for comment. A copy ofthe report is available at http://www.improveassistedliving.org. The Campaign to Improve Assisted Living is a coalition including SEIUHealthcare, assisted living residents, caregivers, family members, andsenior advocates working together to make sure that assisted livingfacilities provide quality, safe housing and services at a good value.