Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center
5211 HIGHWAY 110, Aurora, MN 55705
Aurora, Minnesota · CMS verdict
CMS rates Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center at 5 of 5 stars overall - above-average on the federal scale, and above the Minnesota average of 3.2.
The rating and the PlainElderCare Index below summarize federal inspection, staffing, and outcome data, they measure specific, documented dimensions of this facility, not a holistic verdict on the care your family member would receive. Visit in person, talk with staff and current residents' families, and weigh your family member's specific needs before choosing.
Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center in Aurora, Minnesota holds a CMS overall rating of 5 of 5 stars and a PlainElderCare Quality & Compliance Index of 98 of 100 (grade A). The 33-bed facility operates where a semi-private nursing-home room in Minnesota runs a median of $10,646 per month. Figures are from CMS Nursing Home Compare.
Quality & Compliance Index (thinner bed book)
At 33 certified beds, this facility sits in the lower U.S. bed tercile (≤80). A transparent composite of this facility's CMS Care Compare sub-ratings and its federal inspection record. It complements, and does not replace, the official CMS overall rating of 5 of 5 stars. How this is calculated.
How the 98 is built
Each segment is a dimension's weighted points toward the score, summing to 98.
Weights: health inspections 30%, staffing 25%, quality measures 25%, inspection record 20%; any dimension CMS has not published drops out and its weight redistributes (no silent deflation). Inspection record is benchmarked against all rated US nursing homes. Source: CMS Nursing Home Compare.
Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center's thinner certified-bed book
Quality ratings
CMS's most recent Care Compare release (data as of April 2026) puts Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center's overall quality rating at 5 out of 5 stars, a composite of three sub-ratings: health inspection (5/5), staffing (5/5), and quality measures (5/5).
What each sub-rating measures
The health inspection rating reflects on-site surveyor findings from the last three cycles. The staffing rating compares case-mix-adjusted nurse hours per resident day to national benchmarks, and quality measures aggregate 15 clinical indicators including pressure ulcers, falls with injury, and long-stay antipsychotic use.
Size and setting
Located in Aurora, Minnesota, this facility operates 33 certified beds with an average daily census of roughly 32 residents - an occupancy rate of about 97%. The facility is classified under non profit - corporation ownership, a designation that can influence staffing patterns, reinvestment decisions, and admissions policy. At roughly 97% occupancy, this facility is running near full capacity, worth confirming current bed availability directly before visiting.
Same-ownership peers
Within Minnesota, Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center is one of 161 non profit - corporation nursing homes CMS rates. Its 5-star overall rating sits above the non profit - corporation-segment average of 3.6 stars, ahead of roughly 68% of same-ownership peers in the state. Same-segment comparisons like this one strip out the business-model factor, leaving a cleaner read on facility-level performance than a raw state average would give.
Inspection record
On the regulatory side, federal and state surveyors have documented a moderate number of deficiencies at this facility (8 total). CMS has levied no enforcement penalties over the equivalent window. This volume of findings is worth reading past the count: CMS's F-tag scale separates isolated, low-harm citations from widespread or immediate-jeopardy ones, and only the full report shows which this facility has.
Where these figures come from
Figures above come from CMS Nursing Home Compare (Care Compare, data as of April 2026) with state cost medians from the CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey. See our methodology for vintage.
How Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center's upper-tercile stars compare to Minnesota
CMS five-star sub-ratings (0–5) for this facility against the Minnesota facility-weighted average. Source: CMS Care Compare.
Bar = this facility's rating · vertical marker = Minnesota state average. Higher is better on all four CMS measures.
Where Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center ranks in Minnesota
Among the 337 CMS-rated nursing homes in Minnesota, Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center’s 5-star overall rating is higher than 74% of them. The bars show how all Minnesota homes spread across the CMS 1-to-5 scale; this facility’s band is highlighted.
88 Minnesota homes share this 5-star rating. Source: CMS Nursing Home Compare.
Facility details
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Beds | 33 |
| Residents | 32 |
| Ownership | Non profit - Corporation |
| County | St. Louis |
| Penalties | 0 |
| Deficiencies | 8 |
Source: CMS Care Compare Nursing Homes (data as of April 2026)
What do families ask most?
What is the quality rating for Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center? ▾
Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center has an overall CMS quality rating of 5 out of 5 stars, with a health inspection rating of 5/5, staffing rating of 5/5, and quality measures rating of 5/5.
How much does a nursing home cost per month in Minnesota? ▾
CareScout's 2025 survey puts Minnesota's median semi-private nursing home rate at $10,646 per month ($127,750 per year), with private rooms averaging $13,870 per month.
What services does Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center offer? ▾
Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center operates as a skilled nursing facility (33 beds with approximately 32 current residents) under non profit - corporation ownership. CMS inspections have recorded 8 deficiencies and 0 penalties there.
Does Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center have any deficiencies or penalties? ▾
Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center has multiple deficiencies (8 total) and 0 penalties recorded by CMS. A count in this range makes it worth asking staff or the facility directly which findings were minor paperwork versus resident-care issues.
What are the alternatives to a nursing home in Minnesota? ▾
In Minnesota, alternatives include assisted living ($6,573/mo), home health aides ($8,389/mo), and adult day care ($2,600/mo).
Keep reading
Also see the Minnesota elder-care overview and highest-rated states. Provider ID: 245469.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.