Both of Henderson’s state legislators say they are trying to learn more about personal care homes since the publication of a Hendersonian article last week that shed light on living conditions at the Henderson Manor.
In the article, a local pastor, Fr. Richard Meredith of Holy Name Catholic Church, and the parish’s nurse, Shannon Long, decried the conditions of Henderson Manor, a personal care home at 201 Watson Lane that houses many wards of the state and others who cannot take care of themselves without help. Meredith described the facility as “squalor.”
State Sen. Robby Mills and state Rep. J.T. Payne both said they didn’t know much about personal care homes before reading the article and both spent some time this week learning about how these facilities work.
Even with some research, Payne said he’s still unsure of the specific workings of personal care homes, which are privately owned, and added that it’s been difficult to find much information about the facilities and the regulations that they are supposed to abide by, including how facilities such as the Henderson Manor are funded.
Mills had similar thoughts, saying at first that he thought the facilities received funding from Medicaid, but then after having a Senate staffer check on it, he learned that these facilities’ funding sources comes out of residents’ Social Security benefits and disability checks.
Payne said he plans to ask for a meeting with Cabinet of Health and Family Services officials to learn about the workings and oversight of personal care homes.
One concern Payne said he hopes to clear up is transparency. He said he would like to put in place reporting procedures that document the funding that personal care homes take in and what that funding goes to. He said it should be put in a place where people can access accurate information, such as an online portal.
Another concern, according to the representative, is to ensure that personal care homes are in good condition.
Mills said personal care homes are important for many of their residents, who would have little or no support without them and could find themselves in bad situations, such as in jail or homeless.
Payne said it’s much too early if anything would come out of meeting with CHFS officials—he only wants to learn more about personal care homes—and added it’s also too early to say if he would be interested in introducing legislation in the state’s next General Assembly session.
Payne, however, did say that if a “clear, legislative solution” were to become evident, “then it’s definitely something I want to be a part of.”
At this time, though, it appears to Payne that oversight of personal care homes is an executive branch obligation. The governor appoints cabinet directors.
Inspections that have been conducted at Henderson Manor have been done by officials with the Kentucky Office of the Inspector General, which falls under the purview of the CHFS.
Despite the criticisms from Meredith and Long, state officials have recently found the facility acceptable. That was echoed by the facility’s administrator in the article. “We have passed all state regulations,” she said.
The Green River Health Department can and does make regular checks on the food safety, but the health department can’t do much more than that. The Henderson Manor received a C grade with critical violations in a January health department inspection. In its February food inspection, it received an A/98.
After the publication of the article and its posting to Facebook, numerous people commented on the Henderson Manor, many saying the facility has been in poor condition for decades. The current owners, Eldercare Partners Asset Management LLC out of Cedarhurst, N.Y., has owned the property and business since 2023, according to the Henderson County Public Valuation Administrator’s website.
Payne said it’s “our job as a community” to make sure that the vulnerable population is taken care of.
