Home Industries Health Services Kingston Center closes amid plans to transition ownership

Kingston Center closes amid plans to transition ownership

Updated at 3:45 p.m.

By

Katie Castellani

-

01/28/2025

Centers Health Care — THE KINGSTON CENTER for Rehabilitation and Health Care, a 55-bed skilled nursing facility in South Kingstown operated by Centers Health Care, closed earlier this month as it was in the process of transitioning to new owners.

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – A 55-bed skilled nursing facility in the West Kingston section of town closed earlier this month as it was in the process of transitioning to new owners. On Dec. 30, 2024, operators of the Kingston Center for Rehabilitation and Health Care notified the R.I. Department of Health that the facility would be

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SOUTH KINGSTOWN – A 55-bed skilled nursing facility in the West Kingston section of town closed earlier this month as it was in the process of transitioning to new owners. On Dec. 30, 2024, operators of the Kingston Center for Rehabilitation and Health Care notified the R.I. Department of Health that the facility would be closing. The notification came weeks after the Health Services Council recommended the approval of a Change in Effective Control from AdviniaCare, a Stoughton, Mass.-based health care company, to take over the facility on Dec. 10. The facility was closed because of the building’s physical condition, including a “lack of private bathrooms in the residents’ rooms and a lack of homelike environment,” according to a Jan. 13 email that a legal representative for AdviniaCare sent to RIDOH. There were 25 Medicaid residents at the Kingston Center on Dec. 30. By Jan. 13, 20 residents were relocated, with four more that were expected to be transferred by the end of that week. Ten residents were transferred to the Bannister Center for Rehabilitation and Health Care and four others were sent to the Oak Hill Center for Rehabilitation and Health Care, at their request. It was not immediately clear where the other residents were transferred. Ray Talamonia Jr., vice president of operations at AdviniaCare, said all residents were transferred to the facility of their choosing in the area and discharges were overseen by the state ombudsman’s office. The decision to close the facility came because of its “very antiquated physical environment.” AdviniaCare has withdrawn its application to take over the Kingston Center, but the company is looking to acquire the Bannister Center in Providence and the Oak Hill Center in Pawtucket – all three of which are operated under the parent company Centers Health Care. The Health Services Counsel also recommended the approval of AdviniaCare's Change in Effective Control applications for the Bannister Center and Oak Hill Center on Dec. 10. Centers Health Care, a Bronx, N.Y.-based company that operates dozens of facilities in New England, has faced several challenges in the past several years. Centers Health Care was ordered to pay $45 million in November 2024 by N.Y. Attorney General Letitia James. The payment serves as a settlement for a lawsuit James brought against Centers in June 2023 alleging that the company stole $83 million of Medicaid, Medicare and other funds for personal gain. No Rhode Island facilities were named in the filing. Centers for Health Care spokesperson Jeff Jacomowitz denied the allegations in 2023. The diversion of funds resulted in “significant resident neglect, harm, and humiliation” at three of the chain’s homes in and around New York City and another near Buffalo, N.Y., James said. Centers Health Care’s three Rhode Island facilities paid $192,622 in back wages and liquidated damages to 89 employees in September 2019. The backpay and damages were paid to resolve violations of overtime and minimum wage provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The facilities were also ordered to pay $68,796 in civil penalties. The Bannister Center, a 161-bed skilled nursing facility, and the Oak Hill Center, a 129-bed skilled nursing facility, earned two out of five stars and one out of five stars ratings, respectively, from Medicare because of their below-average health inspection, understaffing and quality measures in reports through the past three years. The Kingston Center earned three out of five stars from Medicare. (UPDATE: Adds paragraph 5 with comment from AdviniaCare Vice President of Operations Ray Talamonia Jr., plus minor changes throughout.) Katie Castellani is a PBN staff writer. You may contact her at Castellani@PBN.com.