Willowbend Nursing And Rehabilitation Center
2231 HIGHWAY 80 E, Mesquite, TX, 75150
Federal Quality Data
Official records from CMS Care Compare — reported by the facility and audited by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. We present them unmodified. Refreshed March 2026.
CMS Star Ratings
Facility & Staffing
- Ownership
- For profit - Corporation · Chain: The Ensign Group
- Certified beds
- 162 · avg 121 residents/day
- Total nursing staff turnover
- 52.8% — near the Texas averageTexas avg: 51.5% · National avg: 46.4% · per CMS Care Compare
- RN turnover
- 57.1% — higher than most Texas nursing homesTexas avg: 50.5% · National avg: 43.6% · per CMS Care Compare
- Administrators who left
- 1 departed — near the Texas averageTexas avg: 0.6 · National avg: 0.5 · per CMS Care Compare
Enforcement & Citations
- Fines (past 3 years)
- 4 fines · $94,394 total
- Payment denials
- 1 denial
State licensing & capacity
- License number
- 144729
- Service type
- Medicare/medicaid
- Licensed capacity
- 162 beds
- Bed type breakdown
- 24 Medicare-only · 138 Medicaid/Medicare
- Current license effective
- February 20, 2025
- Current license expires
- February 20, 2028
- Initial license date
- September 1, 1971
Texas HHSC licensing registry · as of April 16, 2026
Ownership & operations
- Licensee
- Eastland Memorial Hospital District (HOSPITAL DISTRICT/AUTHORITY)
- Operator / manager
- Town East Healthcare, Inc
- Administrator
- Hunter Funkhouser
Texas HHSC licensing registry · as of April 16, 2026
Federal ownership record
Chain affiliation
Part of the The Ensign Group chain — 329 facilities across 17 states. Chain-wide average overall rating 3.2 / 5.
Disclosed owners (5 on record)
- Laban Wright
Corporate Officer · since 2021
- Eastland Memorial Hospital District
5% or Greater Direct Ownership Interest · 100% · since 2015
- Town East Healthcare, Inc.
Operational/managerial Control · 100% · since 2015
- Kevin Niccum
Operational/managerial Control · 100% · since 2007
- Soon Burnam
Operational/managerial Control · since 2007
Source: CMS Provider Enrollment data — SNF Enrollments + All Owners + Chain Performance Measures, as of April 2026.
Federal inspection record
Immediate-jeopardy citations (CMS scope/severity J–L) are the most serious category federal inspectors issue — meaning a deficiency placed residents in immediate risk of serious harm. Ask the facility for the corrective-action plan filed with CMS, and consider contacting your state long-term care ombudsman for context.
Recent health-deficiency citations (most recent 8 of 29)
- D0609·Nov 20, 2025Complaint
Freedom from Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation Deficiencies
Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
- D0584·Sep 5, 2025Complaint
Resident Rights Deficiencies
Honor the resident's right to a safe, clean, comfortable and homelike environment, including but not limited to receiving treatment and supports for daily living safely.
- D0689·Mar 25, 2025Complaint
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies
Ensure that a nursing home area is free from accident hazards and provides adequate supervision to prevent accidents.
- D0580·Mar 25, 2025Complaint
Resident Rights Deficiencies
Immediately tell the resident, the resident's doctor, and a family member of situations (injury/decline/room, etc.) that affect the resident.
- E0686·Mar 25, 2025Complaint
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies
Provide appropriate pressure ulcer care and prevent new ulcers from developing.
- D0609·Feb 7, 2025Complaint
Freedom from Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation Deficiencies
Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
- D0607·Feb 7, 2025Complaint
Freedom from Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation Deficiencies
Develop and implement policies and procedures to prevent abuse, neglect, and theft.
- E0812·Oct 16, 2024Complaint
Nutrition and Dietary Deficiencies
Procure food from sources approved or considered satisfactory and store, prepare, distribute and serve food in accordance with professional standards.
Federal penalties
By year
- 20241 fine · $17K
- 20233 fines · $78K · 1 payment denial
Most recent events
- Jan 17, 2024Fine · $17K
- Nov 3, 2023Fine · $7,446
- Sep 15, 2023Fine · $46K
- Jul 27, 2023Payment denial · 6 days · starting Aug 31, 2023
- Jul 27, 2023Fine · $24K
Largest single fine on record: $46K.
Fire-safety citations
22 Life-Safety-Code citations on file. Most recent: Oct 16, 2024. Fire-safety inspections cover building-level Life Safety Code compliance, separate from the resident-care health survey.
Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog — Health Deficiencies, Fire Safety Deficiencies, and Penalties datasets, snapshot Mar 1, 2026.
About this community
Willowbend Nursing And Rehabilitation Center is a 162-bed nursing home in Mesquite, Dallas County, managed by Town East Healthcare, Inc. under the Ensign Group chain. CMS rates it 2 stars overall, with 2-star ratings for both health inspections and staffing. Four CMS fines totaling $94,394 have been issued; the quality-of-care measures rate 4 stars. The facility is operating at roughly 74% of licensed capacity.
Written from CMS Care Compare and state licensing records · last updated April 19, 2026
What the data says
CMS rates Willowbend 2 stars on staffing — a rating shared by about 32% of Texas nursing homes. Each resident receives approximately 208 minutes of nursing care per day, roughly 33 minutes less than at a 4-star-staffing facility in Texas. Of that total, only 11 minutes come from a registered nurse; the 4-star threshold in Texas is 37 RN minutes per resident per day.
Four CMS fines totaling $94,394 have been issued against this facility. The state median fine total among fined facilities in Texas is $20,699, and about 30% of Texas nursing homes have no fines at all — this facility's total is more than four times the state median.
One administrator has turned over in the past year. The current administrator is Hunter Funkhouser.
The facility is operating at approximately 74% of its 162 licensed beds, with an average of 120.5 residents per day. In Texas, notably low occupancy at a facility with other regulatory signals can indicate referral patterns or reputation effects worth exploring directly.
Written from CMS Care Compare and state licensing records · last updated April 19, 2026
Questions to ask when you tour
Reason for four CMS fines
Ask what the four CMS fines — totaling $94,394 — were issued for and what specific changes were made in response to each.
Registered nurse coverage each day
CMS data shows just 11 minutes of registered nurse time per resident per day here; ask how many RNs are on the floor during a typical day shift and overnight.
Administrator transition and stability
One administrator changed in the past year; ask how long Hunter Funkhouser has been in the role and whether other department leadership has also turned over.
Why occupancy is below 75%
The facility is running at about 74% capacity with roughly 42 beds empty; ask what is driving the lower census and whether staffing levels adjust to match actual resident count.
Quality measures versus other ratings
CMS rates care quality outcomes 4 stars while staffing and health inspections rate 2 stars; ask how the facility tracks and acts on quality-of-care data given the staffing levels.
Resident Council participation and meeting frequency
The facility has a Resident Council but no Family Council; ask how often the Resident Council meets and how findings are communicated to families.
Where this information comes from
- License, capacity, ownership, administrator: Texas HHSC licensing registry, snapshot as of April 16, 2026.
- Star ratings, staffing, fines, deficiencies: CMS Care Compare, processed March 1, 2026.
- Summary, insights, and tour questions: Written from the state licensing and CMS records above, last updated April 19, 2026.
Read our methodology for how this information is collected and verified.