Most families reach this page with a discharge planner waiting on an answer. If that's you, book a call now and read the rest after — we can work fast.
A skilled nursing facility provides licensed clinical care around the clock — the level above assisted living. Families arrive here two ways: short-term rehabilitation after a hospital stay for a fracture, stroke, surgery, or serious illness; or long-term care when medical needs exceed what any residential community can safely handle.
A discharge planner tells you your father is medically stable and needs to leave, hands you a printed list of facilities, and asks which one you'd like. You've never heard of any of them, and you may have until tomorrow.
That list is not a ranking — it's typically every facility with an open bed, and quality across it varies enormously. The pressure is real, but you have more say than you're often made to feel: you're entitled to choose the facility, and you can push back on a timeline that doesn't give you a fair chance to decide.
A hospital discharge with a list and a deadline
Rehab after a hip fracture, joint replacement, or fall
Recovery following a stroke or cardiac event
Needs like wound care, IV therapy, or tube feeding
An assisted living community saying needs now exceed their license
Medicare rehab days running out with no plan in place
Skilled nursing is one of the few senior care settings Medicare does help pay for — but only under specific conditions, and only for a limited time. Understanding the structure prevents a painful surprise around week four.
Rules, dollar amounts, and thresholds change, and individual circumstances vary widely. Confirm specifics with the facility's business office, your plan, or Medicare directly — treat this as orientation, not a coverage determination.
Ask early what happens when coverage ends — if long-term care follows, it's paid privately, through long-term care insurance, or through Medicaid for those who qualify.
Skilled nursing is the most expensive setting in senior care, which is why matching the setting to the actual level of need matters so much financially. A nursing home costs close to double assisted living.
Figures above reference the CareScout (formerly Genworth) 2025 Cost of Care Survey, published March 2026, alongside rates we see quoted locally. Survey medians are a planning starting point, not a quote — your actual cost depends on the community, the apartment, and your loved one's assessed level of care. These figures are reviewed annually; confirm current pricing directly with any community.
The transition is what catches families off guard: a covered rehab stay can end with little warning, and private-pay long-term care begins around $8,800 a month. Starting the Medicaid conversation in week one leaves options that week fourteen does not.
Skilled nursing quality varies more than any category in senior care, and it's the one with substantial public data. We use all of it before ever setting foot inside — though ratings are a starting point, not a verdict. We've seen well-rated facilities with serious staffing problems and modestly rated ones delivering excellent rehab. The data narrows the field; the visit decides it.
Tell us the deadline. We work same-day when the hospital clock is running and you can't wait 48 hours.
CMS ratings, staffing hours, citation history, therapy intensity, and readmission rates — before you tour anything.
Whether it's rehab, what discharge home requires; whether it's long-term, how it will be paid after Medicare.
Including the next move, if rehab leads to assisted living, memory care, or home with support.
Our deepest facility knowledge is in metro Atlanta, and we work with families throughout Georgia. For a hospital discharge outside metro Atlanta, tell us the hospital and we'll be straight with you about how well we know that market.
Skilled nursing gets the same nine-point evaluation, weighted toward licensing and regulatory history, nurse staffing and turnover, and clinical care capability — the factors that most directly drive outcomes at this level of care.
Read our full nine-point vetting process →
Nothing. No consultation fee, no hourly rate, no retainer, no invoice. Everhaven is paid a referral fee by the community or agency when a family we introduced moves forward — from their marketing budget, not from your rate, and you would not pay less by going directly.
Yes — this is a large share of what we do. Contact us with the hospital, the deadline, and what your loved one needs, and we'll work same-day. It also helps to know you're generally entitled to choose the facility, and that a discharge timeline can often be extended when a family needs a fair chance to decide.
Largely the same physical setting; the difference is the service. "Skilled nursing" describes licensed clinical care, which may be short-term rehab or long-term. "Nursing home" colloquially refers to long-term residence. Many Georgia facilities provide both, sometimes in separate wings.
Possibly, for a limited period, if a qualifying inpatient hospital stay preceded it and skilled care remains medically necessary. Coverage is capped per benefit period and can end sooner if therapy plateaus. Medicare Advantage plans apply their own rules. Confirm your specific situation with the facility's business office or your plan.
Either your loved one is well enough to go home, possibly with in-home care, or long-term care continues and must be paid privately, through long-term care insurance, or via Medicaid for those who qualify. We raise this in week one, because families who plan early have far better options than families who find out in week fourteen. More on paying for care →
Only if their medical needs fall within what an assisted living community is licensed to provide, which varies by community. If a hospital is recommending skilled nursing, there's usually a clinical reason. We can assess honestly whether an assisted living option is realistic. See assisted living →
Tell us the hospital, the deadline, and what your loved one needs. We work same-day when the timeline demands it — at no cost to your family.
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