Eric Bates

In the following viewpoint, Eric Bates asserts that nursing homes provide shoddy—and frequently fatal—care to the elderly. He details several fatal incidents in homes owned by Beverly Enterprises, which controls more nursing-home beds than any other firm of its kind. According to Bates, Beverly Enterprises and other nursing home chains are more interested in earning profits than ensuring that their patients receive reliable care. Bates is a staff writer for the Independent, a locally owned alternative weekly in Durham, North Carolina.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to the federal study cited by the author, what proportion of California nursing homes had been cited for fatal or life-threatening violations?
2. What led to the rise of privately run nursing homes, as explained by Bates?
3. According to Bates...