JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A day after Action News Jax went inside the Jacksonville Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare in the Moncrief area and documented conditions inside, both the reporter and the woman who helped bring attention to those conditions have been told they are no longer allowed on the property.
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Action News Jax was first invited to the facility by Alesia Lewis, who said her friend has lived there for nearly a decade. During that visit, a leaking ceiling, a live cockroach, and a broken elevator were observed. Photos of her friend were taken with his permission.
The day after that report aired, both Lewis and Action News Jax’s Deja Mayfield were formally trespassed from the property. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office notified them that returning could result in arrest.
Mayfield had reached out to the facility’s director of nursing for a response to the conditions shown in the report. Instead of receiving answers, she was told not to call again and was later issued a trespass warning.
Lewis said being barred from the facility has made it difficult to check on her friend. She said she normally speaks with him regularly, but after the story aired, she struggled to reach him by phone.
“I’m disheartened about the situation that they no longer want me here. I’m all he got,” Lewis said.
While meeting with Action News Jax, Lewis was eventually able to reach her friend by phone. In part of that conversation, he indicated he still wanted to see her.
Despite that, Lewis said she does not know if she will be allowed back inside.
“I’m hoping and praying. I am. This is why I’m fighting,” she said.
She also said she believes speaking out was necessary.
“I’m sorry that you all may be angry with me concerning this here, but it need to be told,” Lewis said.
Action News Jax has also reached out to the state agency responsible for inspecting healthcare facilities in Florida for comment on the situation and is still waiting for a response.
If you believe a licensed health care facility is not providing adequate care, you can report it to the Florida Agency of Health Care Administration by clicking here.
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