(Iowa Capital Dispatch – Clark Kauffman) The federal government has added two Iowa nursing homes to its list of the worst care facilities in the nation.
Oakland Manor in Pottawattamie County and Harmony House Health Care Center in Waterloo have been added to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ nationwide list of care facilities that are eligible for special-focus status, indicating a history of serious, recurring resident-care issues.
At any given time, no more than two nursing homes per state appear on the list of federally designated “special-focus facilities,” while 10 others in each state are designated as eligible for such a designation due to resident-care issues.
The 100 facilities that are designated special-focus facilities are subject to a comprehensive, onsite inspection at least once every six months, with the expectation that they will eventually take substantive action to address any ongoing issues.
The two Iowa nursing homes that are currently enrolled in the special-focus program are Garden View Care Center in Shenandoah, and Pine Acres Rehabilitation and Care Center in West Des Moines. Garden View has been in the program for 12 months and Pine Acre for 14 months.
Oakland Manor cited for abuse, staffing issues
In addition to the list of the 100 nursing homes actively enrolled in the special-focus program, CMS also publishes a list of the roughly 500 homes — 10 per state — where recurring, serious resident-care issues have made them eligible for enrollment.
Oakland Manor’s recent addition to the list of eligible homes appears to stem from a number of violations cited by inspectors over the past 16 months.
In July 2025, state inspectors cited the home for 18 regulatory violations related to resident nutrition, abuse and neglect, failure to self-report alleged violations, failure to meet professional standards, overall quality of care, feeding assistance and infection control.
In January 2026, the home was cited for 14 regulatory violations, including failing to provide a safe, clean, homelike environment; failure to self-report violations; overall quality of care; inadequate respiratory care and insufficient nursing staff.
In April 2026, the home was cited for resident abuse after it was determined that hundreds of narcotic tablets were missing from residents’ drug supplies and the cards that had contained the tablets had been tampered with.
Harmony House cited for abuse and medication errors
Waterloo’s Harmony House Health Care Center was cited for 15 regulator violations in August 2025. The violations were tied to abuse and neglect, failure to self-report violations, failure to develop and implement comprehensive resident care plans, overall quality of care, treatment of pressure sores and infection control.
In March 2026, Harmony House was cited for 13 regulatory violations, including failure to investigate cases of potential resident abuse, failure to meet professional standards, overall quality of care, inadequate nursing services, insufficient nursing staff and medication errors.
The eight other Iowa nursing homes currently deemed eligible for special-focus status, and the number of months they have been on that list, are:
Azria Health Park Place, Des Moines: Eight months.
Bishop Drumm Retirement Center, Johnston: Nine months.
Caring Acres Nursing and Rehab Center, Anita: Seven months.
Chapters Living, Council Bluffs: Four months.
Greater Southside Health and Rehabilitation Center, Des Moines: 45 months.
The Ivy, Davenport: 10 months.
Northgate Care Center, Waukon: Three months.
Royal Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Urbandale: Two months.
