Decorah · 52101
Wellington Place
2479 River Road
Decorah, IA 52101
The Highlands
⌖ Decorah, IA · Winneshiek County
No photos yet
Medicare overall rating 2 of 5 stars
Certified beds86
Medicare / MedicaidMedicare & Medicaid
OwnershipNon-profit (corporation)
About The Highlands
The Highlands is a 86-bed nonprofit nursing home in Decorah, IA. Medicare rates it 2 out of 5 stars overall (below average); the average in Iowa is 3.1. At its last full inspection (Jul 2026), inspectors found 7 problems, close to the Iowa average of 6.5. None of the problems in its recent inspections were found to have harmed residents. Nurses and aides spend about 3 hr 54 min a day with each resident, about the same as the Iowa average of 3 hr 49 min. About 53% of its nursing staff left in the past year. Medicare fined it $93,839 in the last three years. Its quality ratings are stronger for short-term rehab than for long-term care.
Written from Medicare’s published figures; nothing here is paid for or written by the home. Our methodology
Is this your home? Tell families what makes it special: add photos, a description, care programs and amenities, and answer anything Medicare’s data flags.
Key details
Facility nameThe Highlands
LocationWinneshiek County, Iowa
Phone(563) 382-3603
Address607 Highland Drive, Decorah, IA 52101 · Winneshiek County
CMS provider number165178
Ownership typeNon-profit (corporation)
Official inspection reportsRead them on Medicare.gov ↗
Medicare enrolled sinceJanuary 1, 1993 (33 years)
✓ Medicare✓ Medicaid
Certified for Medicaid; ask whether a Medicaid bed is available.
Quality & inspections
Explore this facility's official CMS inspection history, staffing levels and quality measures below — sourced directly from Medicare's public records.
Ratings and inspection data on this page come directly from CMS's public records and are never altered for any paid listing. Medicare data as of September 2026.
What Medicare found
1 strength and 3 things to ask about in Medicare's inspection, fine and staffing records for this home. 1 care-quality measure is worse than the state average in the rehab and long-term care section below.
Strengths
- Serious health citationsNone on recordNo citations for actual harm or immediate jeopardy since Sep 2025.Strength
About average
- Health citations at last inspection7 (Jul 2026)Iowa average: 6.5. Most citations are minor and corrected within weeks.About average
- Nurse staffing per resident3 hr 54 min a dayIowa average: 3 hr 49 minAbout average
Things to ask about
This home hasn’t responded to these yet. Represent this home? Respond →
- Fines and penalties2 fines totaling $93,839; 1 Medicare payment denialFederal penalties from the last three years, most recently in Dec 2024 (about 1 year ago). The national average is $30,972 per home.Ask about this
- Registered nurse time per resident27 min a dayIowa average: 45 minWorse than state average
- Nursing staff turnover53% a yearIowa average: 44%Worse than state average
Source: Medicare (CMS) inspection, penalty and staffing records, compared with the Iowa average. Problems may have been corrected since; ask the home about anything listed here. How we choose these
Short-term rehab or long-term care?
Medicare rates these separately, and many homes are better at one than the other.
Short-term rehab
For a stay of a few weeks after a hospital visit, such as after surgery or a stroke.
- Sent back to the hospital18.9%State average: 20.9%About average
- Needed an emergency room visit9.9%State average: 13.2%Better than average
- Newly given antipsychotic drugs0.0%State average: 2.1%Better than average
Physical therapist time: about 3 minutes per resident a day. That is more than the state average of 2 minutes. If rehab is the goal, ask how many therapy sessions a week to expect.
Long-term care
For residents who live at the home for months or years.
- Falls with a major injury2.1%State average: 3.8%Better than average
- Pressure sores (bedsores)4.1%State average: 4.2%About average
- Given antipsychotic drugs25.6%State average: 19.5%Worse than average
- Hospital stays per 1,000 resident days1.5State average: 1.5About average
Source: Medicare (CMS) quality measures, compared with the Iowa average. Lower is better for every rate shown.
Who pays, and how full it is
Many residents here pay privately or through insurance. In Iowa, Medicaid pays for 50% of resident days at a typical home.
- 27% Medicaid
- 3% Medicare
- 71% Private pay, insurance and other
Beds in use, on average64%Iowa typical: 79%
Cost of care per resident day$312Iowa typical: $311
Shares of resident days, from the home’s Medicare cost report for the year ending December 2024. The cost per day is what care costs the home to provide, not the price you would pay; ask the home for its private-pay rate. A busy home may have fewer open beds, so ask about availability.
Ratings over time
Its overall Medicare rating is 2 stars now, down from 4 stars in January 2019. It has ranged from 1 to 5 stars and changed 12 times.
Overall rating2★
Health inspections2★
Staffing4★
Quality of care3★
Nurse hours per resident per day3.9
20192020202120222023202420252026
Show the values by year
| Month | Overall | Inspections | Staffing | Quality | Nurse hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2019 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3.3 |
| Jan 2020 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3.1 |
| Jan 2021 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3.6 |
| Jan 2022 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3.6 |
| Jan 2023 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Jan 2024 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3.3 |
| Feb 2025 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3.6 |
| Feb 2026 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 3.3 |
| Sep 2026 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 3.9 |
Source: Medicare (CMS) monthly Care Compare releases since 2019. Medicare has changed how some ratings are calculated over the years and paused most inspections in 2020, so some jumps reflect rule changes rather than changes at the home. Our methodology
See the full inspection reportEvery citation, fine, staffing figure and quality measure Medicare publishes for this home
From Medicare’s September 2026 data. Each inspection is dated below; staffing comes from payroll records for a recent quarter, and resident outcomes cover the latest period Medicare reports.
Inspection summary
How this facility compares to state and national averages on CMS-reported problems.
Loading…
Three-survey history
Citation counts across this facility's three most recent inspection cycles, so you can see whether problems are trending up, down, or holding steady.
Other nursing homes near Decorah
Looking at more than one home? Here are other facilities from the directory in Decorah and the nearby area.
Ossian · 52161
Ossian Care Center
114 Fisher Street
Ossian, IA 52161
Waukon · 52172
Good Samaritan - Waukon
21 East Main Street
Waukon, IA 52172
Explore the area
View more homes nearby
Browse nursing homes in Decorah and the surrounding area.
See all nearby homes →Family reviews
No family reviews of this home yet. Reviews are separate from Medicare’s ratings and are checked before they’re published.