Nursing Home Resident Dies After “Improperly Evicted,” Argues $14 Million Lawsuit
Donald Price was 67 years old when he passed away from declining health conditions, including organ failure. In a new lawsuit filed on behalf of his late wife, Rowena Price, the nursing home facility that cared for him is being accused of a wrongful eviction that led to his death. The lawsuit is seeking state regulatory sanctions and $14 million in damages.
Price was a resident at Powell Valley Memory Care in Gresham, Oregon. In September 2022, after several altercations with staff and other residents, he was sent to a local hospital. When he was discharged from the hospital, Powell Valley Memory Care refused to readmit him.
Price was instead transferred to another nursing home facility which the lawsuit says treated him much better. Despite this improved treatment, the lawsuit argues that Price was “unable to bounce back” from his health issues and that six months later he passed away due to multiple organ failures. The lawsuit claims the mistreatment he endured at Powell Valley Memory Care played a role in his declined medical health and ultimate death.
The lawsuit details that Powell Valley failed to “allocate appropriate staff to monitor and oversee decedent’s interaction with other residents and staff.” When their actions resulted in Price needing medical care, the facility doubled down on its mistreatment of Price by “improperly evict” him afterward. “Powell Valley utilized sending decedent to the hospital as a pretext to remove him from the facility,” the complaint maintains.
Bob Parker Jr., the attorney representing Price’s widow, maintains that the facility “failed to follow the treatment plan. They failed to administer his medications. They egregiously failed to do the things they were contractually obligated to do. They botched it. And they botched it probably because he was the only person of color there.” At the time of his eviction, Price was the only African American resident at the facility.
Powell Valley had been previously under investigation by state regulators over its treatment of Price who found a series of violations that resulted in numerous fines over the substantial evidence of abuse.
Price’s widow shares that in 2015, her late husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. After taking care of him for years, she registered with Powell Valley to continue providing care due to growing health issues.
Between July 25 and September 30, 2022, Price assaulted five different residents. However, the 2023 report by the Oregon Department of Human Services details that his actions were the result of insufficient supervision which ultimately resulted in the “abuse” of Price.
The facility would go on to be cited 11 times by state regulators between 2020 and 2022. Each citation brought with it a $1,000 fine.
