Economics Expert Was Allowed to Opine on Assisted Living Facility Administration Issues
Posted on December 5, 2025 by Expert Witness Profiler
Plaintiffs are the estates of three decedents, Robert W. Petersen (“Mr. Petersen”), Mary Ann Simons, (“Ms. Simons”) and Charlotte Elaine Guilford (“Ms. Guilford”) (collectively, “Plaintiffs”). Plaintiffs were residents of Canyon Creek, an assisted living facility in Billings, Montana specializing in memory care, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Plaintiffs alleged that Canyon Creek was negligent in the care of Mr. Petersen, Ms. Simons, and Ms. Guilford and that its negligent care caused their deaths.
Defendants retained Dr. John Bowblis, Ph.D “to provide an economic and regulatory analysis of the Plaintiffs’ allegations as they pertain to the staffing levels at Canyon Creek.”
Plaintiffs sought to exclude the testimony of Bowblis, arguing that he is not qualified to opine on assisted living facility administration issues or nursing care and that his opinions are not relevant.
Economics Expert Witness
John R. Bowblis is an economics professor at Miami University in Ohio, where he serves as a research fellow at the Scripps Gerontology Center—a leading academic center on aging and aging policy. He is recognized as an expert on staffing levels in long-term care, with papers cited by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. In 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services sought his consultation regarding nursing home staff and expenditures.
Bowblis has also contributed to COVID-19 research and policy. During the pandemic, he served on a special task force in Ohio that assisted with deploying the National Guard to long-term care providers. This work eventually expanded into a federally funded grant studying the effectiveness of visitation bans in nursing homes. His expertise is further evidenced by his roles in research teams funded by Ohio’s state government, his publication and presentation record, and the citations to his work by both state and federal policymakers.
Discussion by the Court
Plaintiffs challenged Bowblis’ qualifications and the relevance of his proposed testimony. As to his qualifications, Plaintiffs argued that Bowblis has never worked in an assisted living facility, is not licensed as an assisted living administrator or nurse, and does not hold a healthcare management degree.
They also objected to several of his rebuttal opinions, claiming those opinions exceeded the scope of his expertise. Those challenged opinions included: (1) appropriate use and availability of personal protective equipment (“PPE”), (2) whether Plaintiffs’ acuity mandated a higher level of care, and (3) the management relationship between Koelsch and Canyon Creek. As to relevance, Plaintiffs argued that Bowblis’ opinions will not assist the jury because they rely on quantitative and statistical comparisons instead of Montana’s standard of care or whether Defendants’ staffing levels met that standard in light of the residents’ acuity and specific needs.
Analysis
Defendants countered that Bowblis is qualified because he has significant experience analyzing staffing and regulatory issues in assisted living facilities. Defendants pointed to his Ph.D. in economics, his extensive authorship and research in the field, and his practical experience.
The Court agreed with Defendants that Bowblis is qualified to testify as an expert and that his testimony is relevant to the disputed issues in this case.
The Court found that his knowledge, education, and experience directly relate to the staffing analysis he offers, rendering his opinions reliable and relevant. Whether Defendants breached the standard of care and caused harm to Petersen, Simons, or Guilford is a factual issue for the jury. A central component of that inquiry is whether Defendants provided adequate staffing levels. Bowblis’ testimony will assist the jury by explaining and contextualizing Canyon Creek’s labor reports, financial and monthly operation reports, staffing level data of other assisted living facilities, and COVID-19 data.
His testimony will also aid the jury through his rebuttal opinions. Bowblis may address PPE shortages because he worked with assisted living facilities facing such shortages in 2020 and later published research on the issue.
Additionally, Bowblis may testify about assisted living facilities caring for residents who require higher levels of care because of his extensive knowledge of Medicaid’s Home and Community-Based Services (“HCBS”) waiver, which allows individuals to receive long-term care outside of nursing homes.
Finally, Bowblis may testify about the relationship between Canyon Creek and Koelsch. As noted, much of his research focuses on how health care and long- term care providers make operational decisions, and how those decisions impact staffing, quality, finance, as well as the relationship between operators and other parties.
Held
The Court denied the Plaintiffs’ motion to exclude the testimony of John Bowblis, Ph.D.
Key Takeaway
Bowblis has significant experience analyzing staffing and regulatory issues in assisted living facilities. His background, combined with his review of the facts in this case, provides a reliable and relevant foundation for his opinions.
Please refer to the blog previously published about this case:
Palliative Care Expert’s New and Expanded Opinions on Facility Neglect Admitted
Case Details:
| Case Caption: | Estate Of Robert W. Petersen Et Al V. Koelsch Senior Communities LLC |
| Docket Number: | 1:22cv11 |
| Court Name: | United States District Court, Montana |
| Order Date: | December 02, 2025 |
