Can a nursing home refuse to accept a patient without giving reason?

They usually have to wait for a Medicare bed availability.

The usual reason for " rejection" is that there is no bed. The other is that the patient needs a higher level of care.

Is there more to the story?

Evidently. I'll never forget being told by a nursing home that they feared they would fail to meet my expectations. This was the evening before my In laws were to be transferred from a hospital rehab the next morning which was 8 hours away. I was stunned. But in the long run it was a blessing because I was able to get them accepted into a much better one.