Nursing home · Top rated by CMS
Life Care Center of Banner Elk
185 Norwood Hollow Road, Banner Elk, NC 28604 · Map
For profit - Corporation · Part of Life Care Centers Of America (194 facilities) · 118 certified beds
Life Care Center of Banner Elk is a Medicare-certified nursing home in Banner Elk, North Carolina. CMS rates it 5 out of 5 stars overall (2/5 for staffing, 4/5 for health inspections). Nurse staffing is 3.04 hours per resident per day, below the North Carolina average of 3.78. Its most recent inspection on Aug 6, 2025 cited 3 deficiencies.
CMS quality ratings
Ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), updated monthly. 5 stars is the highest quality.
How Life Care Center of Banner Elk compares
This facility vs. the North Carolina and national averages, from CMS data. For staffing, higher is generally better; for turnover and deficiencies, lower is better.
| Metric | This facility | North Carolina avg | National avg | Compared with the state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 3.04 | 3.78 | 3.89 | below avg |
| RN staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 0.41 | 0.59 | 0.68 | below avg |
| Aide staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 1.62 | 2.33 | 2.34 | below avg |
| Nursing staff turnover | 30.8% | 50.4% | 46.4% | below avg |
| Deficiencies cited, last inspection | 3.0 | 5.6 | 9.5 | below avg |
Staffing
Hours per resident per day as reported to CMS. Higher numbers indicate more direct care time.
Staff turnover
Lower turnover typically indicates better working conditions and continuity of care. National average for nursing staff is 46.4%.
Recent health inspection
CMS inspects nursing facilities regularly. Deficiencies are categorized by severity.
- Every deficiency from the August 6, 2025 inspection was corrected by August 22, 2025
What inspectors found at Life Care Center of Banner Elk
Specific deficiencies cited in recent CMS health inspections, most recent first. Severity follows the CMS scope/severity scale. Source: CMS Care Compare.
- Potential for harm
Provide and implement an infection prevention and control program.
Infection Control Deficiencies · Aug 6, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Ensure drugs and biologicals used in the facility are labeled in accordance with currently accepted professional principles; and all drugs and biologicals must be stored in locked compartments, separately locked, compartments for controlled drugs.
Pharmacy Service Deficiencies · Aug 6, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Provide appropriate care for residents who are continent or incontinent of bowel/bladder, appropriate catheter care, and appropriate care to prevent urinary tract infections.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Aug 6, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Provide activities to meet all resident's needs.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Aug 21, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Try different approaches before using a bed rail. If a bed rail is needed, the facility must (1) assess a resident for safety risk; (2) review these risks and benefits with the resident/representative; (3) get informed consent; and (4) Correctly install and maintain the bed rail.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Aug 21, 2024 · Full report (PDF)
Show all 7 deficiencies
- Potential for harm
Honor the resident's right to organize and participate in resident/family groups in the facility.
Resident Rights Deficiencies · Aug 21, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Provide appropriate care for a resident to maintain and/or improve range of motion (ROM), limited ROM and/or mobility, unless a decline is for a medical reason.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · May 24, 2023
Read the full inspection reports on Medicare.gov Each inspection there has a “Read the full report” link with the inspectors’ written findings.
About this facility
- Address
- 185 Norwood Hollow Road
Banner Elk, NC 28604 - CMS certification #
- 345203
- Ownership
- For profit - Corporation
- Certified beds
- 118
- Avg residents/day
- 67.2
- Provider type
- Medicare and Medicaid
- First certified
- 1981-10-01
- Chain
- Life Care Centers Of America (194 facilities)
- Setting
- Rural
Part of Life Care Centers Of America
Life Care Centers Of America operates 194 nursing facilities across the United States. View all Life Care Centers Of America facilities →
Not SLA enrolled. This facility hasn’t enrolled in resident survey verification. Learn about enrollment →
Location and nearby
Explore the area around Life Care Center of Banner Elk using Google Maps.
Other public records
- Website says Nurse 24 hours a day, transportation
Full public records, with dates and sources
Care and services
From the community’s website
What Life Care Center of Banner Elk says about itself, quoted from its own site. We have not checked these claims against licensing records. Ask about each one on a tour.
- Nurse on site: 24 hours a day.
Focusing on inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation with 24-hour skilled nursing care, Life Care Center of Banner Elk's in-house team of therapists and nurses uses state-of-the-art therapy equipment to tailor care for each resident and patient.
(page, checked Oct 12, 2026) - Provides transportation.
Transportation services
(page, checked Oct 15, 2026) - Smoke-free.
Non-smoking facility
(page, checked Oct 15, 2026)
Location and nearby care
- Nearest hospital with an emergency room
- Charles A Cannon Jr Memorial Hospital, Linville. 4.3 miles away, straight line. Location approximate.
- Nearest Medicare nursing home
- The Foley Center at Chestnut Ridge, Blowing Rock. 10.7 miles away, straight line.
- Nearest home health agency office
- Centerwell Home Health, Boone. 11.0 miles away, straight line. Agencies travel to clients, so ask which ones serve this address.
- Nearest pharmacy
- Walgreens. 1.3 miles away, straight line. From OpenStreetMap, which does not list every pharmacy, so one may be closer.
- Area
- USDA classes ZIP code 28604 as rural (rural area).
- Dialysis within 15 miles
- Fresenius Medical Care Watauga County, Boone, 9.8 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 4 of 5 stars)
- Hospice
- 6 Medicare hospices tell CMS they serve ZIP code 28604.
Medi Home Hospice, office in Newland, 9.4 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Medi Home Health And Hospice, office in Boone, 11.4 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Hospice & Palliative Care Of The Blue Ridge, Inc, office in Spruce Pine, 19.5 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 5 of 5 stars) - Nearest geriatric medicine practice
- Blue Ridge Healthcare Medical Group Inc, Morganton. 30.4 miles away, straight line. 1 geriatric medicine doctor listed there.
Distances are straight lines from the community, not driving distance. Hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors come from CMS provider data (CMS, hospital list updated Jul 22, 2026). Star ratings are CMS’s own.
Emergency and natural hazard risk
Public hazard maps for this location. Ask the community about its emergency plan, its generator and where residents would go in an evacuation.
- Flood zone
- Outside the high and moderate risk flood areas on FEMA's flood map (Zone X, minimal flood hazard, or not studied). (FEMA flood map)
- FEMA National Risk Index
- Overall: relatively high. By hazard: hurricane relatively low, inland flooding very high, wildfire relatively low, tornado relatively high, earthquake relatively low. These are FEMA’s ratings for the census tract, compared with tracts nationwide. (FEMA, December 2025)
A flood zone describes the map at this point, not the building's elevation. In an emergency, follow the local emergency management agency.
What we checked
Every public source we searched for this community. “Nothing on record” means we found no record that matched it. A record can be missed when a name or address differs.
| Source | Data as of | What we found |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Department of Labor wage and hour cases | Oct 15, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| OSHA workplace safety inspections since 2016 | Oct 15, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| Hurricane evacuation zone maps | Not in a mapped zone | |
| FEMA flood map | See above | |
| USDA wildfire risk | Apr 15, 2026 | Not shown: FEMA rates wildfire risk here relatively low |
| FEMA National Risk Index | See above | |
| CMS hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors; OpenStreetMap pharmacies | See above | |
| HUD Multifamily Properties - Assisted | Jul 6, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| State Veterans Homes (NASVH directory) | Sep 20, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Hospice - General Information | Aug 19, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Home Health Care Agencies | May 27, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| The community’s own website | See above |
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Frequently asked questions
Is Life Care Center of Banner Elk a good nursing home?
CMS gives Life Care Center of Banner Elk an overall rating of 5 out of 5 stars, including 2/5 for staffing and 4/5 for health inspections. These ratings come from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and are updated monthly.
How is Life Care Center of Banner Elk staffed?
Life Care Center of Banner Elk reports 3.04 total nurse hours per resident per day, compared with the North Carolina average of 3.78.
Has Life Care Center of Banner Elk had inspection problems?
Its most recent CMS inspection cited 3 deficiencies.
How many beds does Life Care Center of Banner Elk have?
Life Care Center of Banner Elk is certified for 118 beds.