Cedar Creek Nursing Home: Food Safety Failures - TX
She said it herself: it should have been put in a zip-top bag, closed, and dated when it was opened. She said staff would have had no way of knowing how old it was. She said it could have possibly caused someone to get sick.
The ham was not the only problem inspectors found that morning. At 10:15 a.m., a walk through the kitchen's standing refrigerator turned up an opened bag of cut lettuce tied shut with no date, half a watermelon wrapped in plastic wrap with no date marking when it had been sliced open, and the ham package itself, open to the air with nothing covering it.
Three minutes later, inspectors found a partially used box of muffin mix in the pantry, open and exposed to the air.
The dietary supervisor, when asked, said the muffin mix should have gone into a zip-top bag and been dated. He said the dating was to track when the box had been opened and ensure quality. He said sealing it would prevent cross-contamination and reduce the risk of attracting pests. He said the lettuce and the watermelon in the refrigerator should have been dated, too. He said he would have preferred the lettuce to be in a zip-top bag rather than just tied off.
Then he said something that put the watermelon in sharper focus: they had cut it and used it to make salads two days before the inspection.
Two days in the refrigerator, wrapped in plastic, no date, no way for any staff member coming on shift to know when it had been opened or whether it was still safe to serve.
The administrator, interviewed at 10:32 a.m., said items in the kitchen should be appropriately packed, sealed, and dated so staff would know when food was outdated and dispose of it properly.
The facility's own food storage policy, written in 2012, says open packages of food are to be stored in closed containers with covers or sealed bags and dated when opened. The dietary supervisor knew the rule. The kitchen worker knew the rule. The administrator knew the rule. On the morning of May 29, none of it had been followed.
Cedar Creek's policy has been on the books for more than a decade. The failures inspectors documented were not complicated or technical. They were a bag of lettuce that needed a label. A watermelon that needed a date. A package of ham that needed to be sealed before it went back in the refrigerator.
Instead, a worker used that ham to make sandwiches for residents, and when asked about it, said the words out loud: it could have possibly caused someone to get sick.
The inspection was classified as a complaint survey. The level of harm was listed as minimal harm or potential for actual harm. Residents affected were listed as some.
In a nursing home, "some" residents means people who may already be managing compromised immune systems, chronic illness, or advanced age, people for whom a foodborne illness is not an inconvenience but a medical event. The dietary supervisor understood that. He said dating and sealing items was part of quality control. He said it was so staff would know how old food was.
On the morning the inspector walked in, the staff did not know. And the sandwiches were already being made.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Cedar Creek Nursing and Rehabilitation Center from 2026-05-29 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Download the official CMS inspection PDF from Medicare.gov
Additional Resources
Data source: This article is based on inspection data downloaded directly from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) via Medicare.gov. CMS releases inspection reports in bulk; we publish the findings as documented by state surveyors in the official Form CMS-2567 Statement of Deficiencies.
Plan of correction: The CMS report we receive does not include the facility's plan of correction. Facilities submit plans of correction separately to state survey agencies and those responses may not be reflected in CMS data at the time of publication. The absence of a plan of correction in our data does not mean one was not filed. Readers who want information about corrective steps taken are encouraged to contact the facility directly or their state survey agency.
Corrections may have occurred: Inspection reports reflect conditions observed on the date of the survey. Facilities may have implemented corrections, staffing changes, additional training, or other remediation since the report was issued. We report what CMS provides and encourage readers to seek current information from the facility.
Editorial process: Inspection findings are extracted from CMS source documents and synthesized using AI, reviewed for factual accuracy against the original report by our editorial team.
Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: September 21, 2026 · Our methodology
Cedar Creek Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Bandera, TX was cited for violations during a health inspection on May 29, 2026.
She said it herself: it should have been put in a zip-top bag, closed, and dated when it was opened.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.