Temporary oversight of eight former Skyline Healthcare skilled nursing facilities in Pennsylvania has come to an end.
The administration of Gov. Tom Wolf last Friday announced that the eight facilities had been sold to new owners, consisting primarily of private investors.
“The Wolf administration would like to thank the employees, contractors, and others who have worked with them under the temporary management,” state health secretary Rachel Levine said in a statement. “The commitment to the residents receiving safe care and having their needs met is a testament to the dedication of these individuals during a difficult situation.”
The eight sales were all effective May 14.
A ninth facility remains under the temporary management of The Long Hill Company, a receiver appointed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Wolf’s office said.
The Reading Eagle first reported the news.
Private owners prevail
Three of the facilities went to an investment group led by BLES Healthcare Management LLC, according to a document provided to Skilled Nursing News by Pennsylvania health officials. Two facilities were sold to a group of private individuals — David Gamzeh, Akiva Glatzer, Gabe Sebbag, and the Lahesky Family Trust.
A further two went to another consortium of private buyers: Leibel Gutman, Brian Kuhn, and Ephraim and Mordy Lehasky. The eighth facility went to the group of Jonathan Bleier, Yaakov Sod, and Lisa Sofia, the department reported.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health first moved to place the nine facilities under interim management on May 2, determining that the struggling Skyline no longer had the funds to safely operate the nursing homes.
“We have installed temporary management at all nine facilities to ensure residents will continue to receive safe care,” Levine said at the time.
The decision marked the fall of yet another domino in the collapsing Skyline chain, which has seen receivership actions in South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas.
Skyline — which emerged from relative obscurity to snap up more than 100 SNFs across the country, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer — is in the midst of exiting the nursing home business entirely, a spokesperson told SNN earlier this month.
In Pennsylvania, members of a union that represents nursing assistants reported inaccurate paychecks and failed to pay into their worker training funds.
Written by Alex Spanko
Companies featured in this article:
