Nursing homes in Maricopa County, Arizona
There are 77 Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing homes in Maricopa County, Arizona, across 16 cities and towns. The federal record holds 876 inspection citations against them since January 2024 — 31 at actual-harm level or above, and 3 at immediate jeopardy.
17 of these homes carry the CMS abuse icon. 3 are in or a candidate for the Special Focus Facility program. Both terms are explained on each facility page.
| City or town | Homes | Citations | Actual harm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix | 23 | 318 | 11 |
| Mesa | 11 | 108 | 2 |
| Scottsdale | 11 | 138 | 6 |
| Glendale | 6 | 61 | 3 |
| Chandler | 5 | 55 | 0 |
| Peoria | 5 | 47 | 2 |
| Tempe | 3 | 31 | 1 |
| Gilbert | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Sun City | 2 | 8 | 0 |
| Sun City West | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| Surprise | 2 | 15 | 0 |
| Avondale | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| Fountain Hills | 1 | 8 | 1 |
| Goodyear | 1 | 40 | 2 |
| Litchfield Park | 1 | 11 | 1 |
| Youngtown | 1 | 15 | 2 |
Was somebody in your family at one of these homes?
Tell us which one and what you saw. Someone will text you back within 15 minutes — what the record means, which agency to notify, and whether there may be a case. It’s free.
Counted from CMS inspection records dated on or after January 1, 2024, in the file dated August 1, 2026. Citation counts also track how often a home was inspected and how many complaints were filed, so a higher count is not by itself proof of worse care.
See every nursing home in Arizona, or all Arizona counties.
Worried about somebody in a home in Maricopa County?
Tell us what you have seen. Use the form at the bottom of this page, or call or text (888) 538-0158. Texting is fine, and it is often easier if you cannot speak freely at home. There is no charge for asking.
What our watchdogs found in Maricopa County’s inspection records
Our team read the federal inspection record for all 77 certified nursing homes in Maricopa County — Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Glendale and the twelve other cities and towns in the table above. Since January 2024, inspectors have written 876 citations against these homes; 31 of those findings were serious enough that inspectors concluded a resident was actually harmed, and 3 reached immediate jeopardy, the most dangerous category. (Source: CMS Provider Information and Health Deficiencies files dated August 1, 2026.)
Here is the number that stopped us: 17 of the county’s 77 homes — more than one in five — currently carry the federal government’s abuse warning icon. That icon is not ours; CMS itself places it on a home’s public listing when inspectors cited the home for abuse that harmed a resident within the past year, or for abuse that could have harmed residents in each of the last two years. Our count is simple arithmetic from the federal file. Three county homes are also in, or candidates for, the Special Focus Facility program — the federal watch list for homes with persistently poor inspection records.
The Maricopa County homes with the most serious findings
These are the 20 county homes with findings at actual-harm level or above since January 2024 — every home in the county with such a finding — ranked by harm findings and then by total citations. Every number comes straight from the CMS file dated August 1, 2026; click any home to read its full record.
Read the table the way an inspector would, not the way a brochure would. The home with the county’s most citations and most harm findings currently shows no star rating at all on CMS’s listing, and five homes on this list hold 4 or 5 stars — the rating system averages over time while a harm finding records a single day somebody got hurt. Citation counts also partly reflect how often inspectors visited and how many complaints families filed, so a longer paper trail isn’t by itself proof of worse care. It is a reason to read the record before you sign anything.
Seventeen county homes carry the federal abuse icon
CMS puts a warning icon on a home’s public listing when inspectors cited it for abuse that harmed a resident within the past year, or for abuse that could have harmed residents in each of the last two years. That’s the federal government’s own definition, on its own clock — which is why 8 of the county’s 17 icon homes have no actual-harm finding in the January 2024 window we count: the icon looks at abuse citations specifically, over its own two-year lookback. The icon reflects the inspection record; it is not a prediction about any resident’s future care. (Source: CMS Provider Information file dated August 1, 2026.)
We’re not making our own list of those 17 homes — the icon is CMS’s flag, and it appears exactly where the government puts it. Open any city in the table above — each city page marks the icon beside the homes that carry it; the homes are spread across Phoenix (8), Glendale (3), Scottsdale (2), and one each in Mesa, Chandler, Peoria and Youngtown. Every such home’s page shows the citation behind the icon, with dates. If your family’s home carries it, read what the citation actually says before drawing conclusions.
What happens next for a Maricopa County family
If someone you love was hurt in one of these homes — an unexplained fall, a pressure sore, bruises nobody will account for, sudden weight loss — here is what the process actually looks like in Arizona, in plain English.
1. Talk it through with us first. Tell us what happened, even if you’re not sure it counts. We’ll tell you exactly which agency handles it — Arizona Adult Protective Services, the state health department that licenses nursing homes, the long-term care ombudsman, or the police — and what to say when you call.
2. We’ll help you file the report. Arizona gives you several doors, and they do different things: Adult Protective Services investigates harm to a vulnerable adult, the Arizona Department of Health Services inspects and can cite the facility, and the ombudsman advocates for your family inside the home. We’ll help you pick the right one and file it with you.
3. Get the records before they’re gone. The home’s charts, staffing logs, and incident reports are the evidence. Your family can demand them — and we send that written request for you the same day you ask.
4. Find out what your family is owed. Arizona’s Adult Protective Services Act lets a family hold a nursing home financially responsible when abuse or neglect caused real harm to a vulnerable adult — and in serious cases the home can be made to pay for more than the medical bills. There’s a clock on this, so don’t sit on it. Cases from this county are heard in Maricopa County Superior Court. Send us what happened — it’s free, and you’ll usually hear back by text within 15 minutes.
Questions Maricopa County families ask us
Seventeen homes carry the abuse icon. Does that mean abuse is everywhere in Maricopa County?
It means the federal government’s own inspectors wrote abuse citations at more than one in five of the county’s homes recently enough to trigger the icon — that’s worth knowing, and it’s why the record matters more here than anywhere else we’ve reported so far. It does not mean every home is dangerous: 60 county homes carry no icon, and 57 have no actual-harm finding at all in this period. Choose with the record open in front of you, not the brochure.
The home we’re considering has 5 stars. The record shows a harm finding. Which do I believe?
Both are real; they measure different things. The star rating averages inspections, staffing, and self-reported quality measures over time. A harm finding records one specific day an inspector concluded a resident was actually hurt. Five homes on our worst-record list hold 4 or 5 stars. Read what the finding was for — it’s on the home’s page — and ask the home directly what changed afterward.
Why does one Scottsdale home show no star rating at all?
CMS sometimes shows no overall rating on a home’s listing — the agency withholds or suspends ratings in certain circumstances rather than publishing one. What the file does show for that home is the county’s longest citation list and its most harm findings in this period, which is why it leads our table. Read its page and the underlying federal record before drawing conclusions.
My mom is in one of the icon homes right now. Should I move her tonight?
The icon is a reason to pay attention, not a verdict on her care today. Read what the home was actually cited for — it’s on the home’s page with dates — visit at odd hours, watch the night shift, and ask the administrator directly what changed after the citation. If something already feels wrong, tell us; retaliating against a resident is itself illegal, and you can raise concerns anonymously through the ombudsman.
Who do I call in Arizona to report what happened — APS, the health department, or the police?
It depends on what happened: a crime goes to the police, harm to a vulnerable adult goes to Adult Protective Services, and a facility problem goes to the Arizona Department of Health Services. You don’t have to figure that out alone — tell us what happened and we’ll tell you which door it is and help you file it. Reporting to one doesn’t close the others.
How long do I have to bring a case in Arizona?
There’s a clock, and for most abuse and neglect cases it’s short — generally two years, sometimes less depending on the facts and who ran the facility. Don’t guess from an article; tell us the dates and we’ll tell you where the clock stands. It costs nothing to ask.
Where these numbers come from
Every count on this page comes from the federal government’s own files: the CMS Provider Information file and the CMS Health Deficiencies file, both dated August 1, 2026, covering citations issued since January 1, 2024. The abuse icon and Special Focus Facility designations are CMS’s own, from the same file. We restate what the record says and link to the underlying file on every home’s page — read how we count, and if we got something wrong, tell us and we’ll fix it. Statewide context lives on our Arizona help page and the full Arizona directory.
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