Overview
- Nursing home companies donated nearly $4.8 million to MAGA Inc. in August and September 2025, according to campaign finance filings.
- Several of the largest donors joined lobbyists for a lunch with President Trump at his suburban Washington golf club, where they pressed to end the staffing requirement, attendees said.
- Less than a month after the lunch, administration lawyers stopped defending the pending rule in court against industry challenges.
- The Department of Health and Human Services then imposed a 10-year moratorium on the Biden-era mandate to raise staffing levels intended to reduce resident neglect and infections.
- Patient advocates cited estimates that higher staffing could save up to 13,000 lives annually, while industry executives warned the rule would drive up costs and risk closures.