Giordano Vetoes Wicomico County Nursing Home Bill
Wicomico County, MD - On Tuesday, October 6, 2026, Wicomico County Executive Julie Giordano vetoed a bill that would change who runs the Wicomico County Nursing Home. A veto is when the county executive rejects a bill that the County Council has passed.
The bill is Emergency Legislative Bill No. 2026-11. Giordano said the bill goes too far, and that it raises legal, money, staffing, and day-to-day concerns for the nursing home and for county taxpayers.
"This bill is not simply about oversight. It fundamentally changes who operates the Nursing Home and inserts the legislative branch directly into personnel and day-to-day operational decisions," Giordano said. "That is not responsible oversight. It creates competing chains of command, unnecessary legal uncertainty, and potentially significant new liability for County taxpayers."
The bill says Wicomico County shall "hold and operate" the nursing home. In the past, the nursing home has run with its own administrator, employees, finances, policies, and duties to state and federal rules.
Giordano's office said the bill does not fully explain how this change could affect things like employee status, benefits, retirement, contracts, and insurance. Her office also said no fiscal analysis was provided. A fiscal analysis is a report that estimates how much a bill could cost taxpayers.
The bill also gives the County Council direct authority over the Nursing Home Administrator. That includes a role in firing the Administrator. At the same time, the Administrator would still report through the executive branch, which is the county executive's side of government.
Giordano said this setup blurs the line between the Council checking on the nursing home and the executive branch running it. She said staff could end up answering to more than one boss.
"The County Council is the legislative branch of government. Its responsibility is to legislate, establish policy, approve appropriations, and exercise appropriate oversight, not place itself inside the operational chain of command of a regulated health care facility," Giordano said.
Giordano also asked why such large, permanent changes were brought as emergency legislation. The bill creates a new chapter in the County Code, a permanent commission, a personnel system, reporting rules, and new county authority over the Administrator.
"You do not fundamentally restructure the governance of a nursing home through emergency legislation without fully understanding the legal, regulatory, personnel, and financial consequences," Giordano said. "The residents and employees of this facility deserve stability-not political micromanagement and governmental confusion."
Giordano said her veto does not mean she is against accountability. She said she is still willing to work with the Council on a properly set up advisory commission, stronger financial reporting, regular reports to county government, and other reasonable steps.
"Accountability and oversight are appropriate. Government overreach is not," Giordano said. "Our residents deserve professional management, regulatory compliance, stability, and decisions centered on their care. That must remain our priority."
