Elders still don't know who will operate their (for-profit) nursing homes (if anyone)

The London Evening Standard reports that the 75,000 residents and staff of the for-profit nursing home chain Southern Cross still remain in the dark about their future, over a month after the business announced it was going kaput.

Britain's biggest nursing home business missed a deadline to announce the future operator of each home.

The plan was to "sell" each home's operation back to the landlords by 1 August. Now, Southern Cross claims it will make an announcement within two weeks, according to the Press Association.

Nationwide the firm has 752 care homes and some 80 different landlords. The Standard reports that analysts expected that between 25 and 35 different operators would take over the homes.

"The ongoing delay is highly frustrating for residents and staff," said Justin Bowden, national officer of the GMB union. "Southern Cross is at the mercy of its landlords."

Public sector spending cuts, declining bed occupancy, and the ongoing economic troubles forced the collapse of Southern Cross earlier this year. There has been some speculation that more for-profit nursing homes could fall victim. A large portion of Ontario nursing homes are run by for-profit corporations.

The British government has said no resident will be left without a roof over their head, but it is not clear what will happen in the case of homes left without an operator, according to This is Money.

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