What to know: KS nursing home operator stole millions and got a Trump pardon | Opinion

Kansas once had to step in and take over 15 troubled nursing homes tied to Joseph Schwartz. Years later, after pleading guilty to tax fraud, Schwartz served just months of a three-year sentence before receiving a full pardon from Donald Trump, according to a recent ProPublica investigation.

FULL STORY: Trump pardoned operator whose firm led Kansas to seize 15 nursing homes | Opinion

Here are key takeaways:

• Skyline Healthcare took over 15 Kansas nursing homes in late 2016. Within months, vendors weren’t getting paid, employees reported delayed or bounced paychecks and some facilities struggled to get basic supplies.
• By early 2018, Kansas went to court to seize all 15 homes, warning residents were at risk. Mission Health took over and still runs all 15 facilities today.
• Federal prosecutors said Schwartz withheld about $39 million in payroll taxes from employees’ checks and never sent the money to the IRS. Funds moved through more than 200 bank accounts tied to a web of companies.
• Schwartz pleaded guilty to tax fraud in 2024 and was sentenced to three years in federal prison. He served about three months before receiving a full pardon from Trump in November.
• Schwartz spent more than $1 million on lobbyists pressing his case in Washington. The ProPublica investigation describes his pardon as part of a flourishing “pardon industry.”
• Kansas has since tightened licensing laws, requiring detailed operating budgets, proof of working capital and a 10-year ban for operators whose facilities land in receivership.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.

This story was originally published April 15, 2026 at 5:03 AM.