Confederate forces may have surrendered to the Union more than 150 years ago, but there’s still one living American who’s receiving veterans’ benefits stemming from Civil War service.
That would be Irene Triplett, a North Carolina skilled nursing resident who gets a monthly check from the Department of Veterans Affairs for her father’s service in the conflict, according to Florida Today. Triplett, 87, was born to Civil War veteran Moses Triplett and a woman more than 50 years his junior.
Though her father died in 1938, Triplett continues to receive $73.13 per month from the VA, and while she’s the only remaining Civil War beneficiary, she isn’t alone in receiving compensation tied to long-ago wars: There are currently 84 Americans who receive benefits earned by relatives in the Spanish-American War, which lasted from April to August 1898 — and helped raise the national profile of Theodore Roosevelt.
Outside of historical oddities, here’s what you need to know from the week in skilled nursing news to jump-start your Monday morning.
SNN dug into the future of skilled nursing within real estate investment trusts (REITs) amid a pair of ongoing storylines in the industry: Quality Care Properties’ (NYSE: QCP) attempt to place tenant HCR ManorCare in receivership, and the contentious merger between Sabra Health Care REIT (NASDAQ: SBRA) and Care Capital Properties (NYSE: CCP), which faced opposition due to uncertainties about the viability of SNFs going forward.
Tutera Senior Living, meanwhile, sees a clear future for SNFs within its continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs), with CEO Joe Tutera telling SNN about his company’s perfect recipe for skilled nursing success.
And finally, high-end dining options have become commonplace in senior living, but several SNF operators and foodservice partners have begun to see the value in providing a variety of meal selections — and one says it didn’t cost them any more than their previous food program.
Innovation in Kentucky
The Thrive Innovation Center, a “thematic experience center” where consumers can try out innovative technology for seniors, is set to officially open in Louisville, Ky. on October 19.
The Thrive Center was created through a public-private partnership between the Commonwealth of Kentucky and Louisville Metro, along with companies such as CDW Healthcare, Ergotron, Intel, Samsung, Lenovo, and HP/Aruba, and health care stakeholders like Signature HealthCare and Kindred Healthcare (NYSE: KND).
“When Signature HealthCARE moved to the post-acute capital of the world, we dreamed of a collaborative place where everyone could engage the consumers, host the conversation, and drive collective change and envision a new future,” Signature HealthCare President and CEO Joe Steier said in a press release.
Written by Alex Spanko
Companies featured in this article:
Care Capital Properties, Department of Veterans Affairs, HCR ManorCare, Quality Care Properties, Sabra Health Care REIT, Tutera Senior Living
