Waterbury nursing home residents, caregivers push back against plan to close facility

Abbott Terrace Health Center is home to 180 people and employs 287 caregivers, who are newly unionized and pushing back against the closure.

“It’s been stressful, overwhelming at times just trying to be as supportive as we can to the residents and do everything we can to try to keep this place from closing,” said Rebecca Zuraitis, an LPN at Abbott Terrace. "A lot of them don't have family here and we're their family and the thought of them not seeing us every day is upsetting to them and it's upsetting to us as well."

The funding was pulled by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) after the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) found that the facility didn’t meet safety requirements.

It has left residents to find a new place to live and caregivers to find a new place to work.

“It’s really my family. I'm here more than I'm home and I'm really attached to all these patients,” said Craig Jacko, lead CAN at Abbott Terrace. “They would be shipped to Bridgeport, out of state a lot of them. Three or four nursing homes have closed already [in Waterbury]. Most of the ones that are here are all filled."

According to a letter from CMS to the facility, they notified their intent to terminate in May, and in a letter dated August 26^th, a representative from CMS wrote, “This letter is to notify you that after a careful review of the facts from the surveys and revisits by the Connecticut Department of Public Health, which shows continued non-compliance, we have determined that Abbott Terrace Health Center no longer meets the requirements for participation as a skilled nursing facility in the Medicare program under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act.”

In a joint statement from DPH and Connecticut Social Services, a spokesperson wrote “[The] relatively unprecedented decision by CMS was not taken lightly and was necessitated by the repeated failures of Abbott Terrace’s owner and management team to prioritize the health and safety of its residents.”

But Athena, the company that oversees operations of the home, said $200,000 was invested in renovating the flooring, and additional dollars were earmarked for further renovations.

“Our team worked hard to address the physical plant concerns identified by DPH. We have invested significant financial resources to assure compliance by upgrading floors, doors, and other identified facility infrastructure,” a spokesperson wrote. “Though we addressed all issues and had expected to achieve compliance in early September, the facility was notified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) that they terminated our participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs effective September 10, 2024.”

“It’s a fire door that didn’t properly function, and a floor that hasn’t yet been fixed. Those are the things, the whoppers,” resident Julia Savage said. “Every home has something that needs to be fixed…and our home definitely needs to be fixed. But theoretically, we have the funding, and it should be put towards fixing our building so we can keep our home.”

On Tuesday, residents rallied outside of the home with homemade signs that said, “Abbott Strong” and “Save Our Home.” Then, a union rally was held, with members calling on state and federal officials to intervene, urging them to help secure more time to come up with a solution.

“This is our home. Some of us have been here well over a decade,” said Savage. “We need Abbott Terrace, we need one another, and the staff needs us. They think of us as family as well.”

Diana Catalani’s husband Skip has lived at Abbott Terrace for the last two years and is now on hospice. She doesn’t know where he’ll live next month.

“The thought of leaving here it makes him sicker. He's so panicky,” she said. "I have no idea where there's room, who would take a person in his condition. He's very sick and doesn't have long and this is terrible to think that he's going to be put out."

Athena said they’re waiting on further direction from CMS and DPH.