California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) has given conditional approval to transfer management of seven skilled nursing facilities operated by Toledo, OH-based ProMedica to Providence Group, a California for-profit corporation.

The move is in response to a proposed May operations transfer agreement covering the facilities, which are part of a joint venture between Toledo-based real estate investment trust Welltower and Integra WIP Member LLC.

Providence Group has operated in California since 2012. It currently is responsible for more than 10,000 licensed beds and 20,000 employees in the state.

“Our top priority when reviewing healthcare transactions is the safety of the residents,” Bonta said Tuesday in a press release. 

The seven SNFs involved in the transaction: 

  • ManorCare Health Services-Citrus Heights, 162 beds;
  • ManorCare Health Services-Sunnyvale, 140 beds;
  • ProMedica Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation (Rossmoor), 155 beds;
  • ProMedica Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation (Tice Valley),120 beds;
  • ManorCare Health Services-Fountain Valley, 151 beds;
  • ManorCare Health Services-Hemet, 178 beds; and
  • ManorCare of Palm Desert, 178 beds.

“Due to the strong conditions we’ve imposed, individuals who live in these nursing facilities will continue receiving care in the place they call home,” Bonta said.

Under California law, any transaction involving the sale or transfer of control of a nonprofit healthcare facility must secure the approval of the attorney general. The attorney general specified in his conditional approval that the Providence Group must provide the same type and level of care currently provided by ProMedica and must retain all current employees. Additionally, the Providence Group must establish a community advisory board at each facility for at least five years, and the company must comply with nondiscrimination rules in providing care.

Providence uses a model that calls for administrators to lead locally. The organization has become one the country’s five largest nursing home operators over the past two years, Jason Murray, CEO of Providence and Providence Administrative Consulting Services, previously told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.

“There’s a lot of opportunity out there for us to replicate what we’ve done year over year and with every acquisition. We will continue to grow because there are 15,000 nursing homes across the country and by my last count, the largest provider has 250 or something,” Murray said. “It’s very fragmented, and there’s a lot of opportunity for continued growth in our sector.”