AHCA: CMS Already Has Authority to Simplify Three-Day Stay Rule for Nursing Home Coverage

The leading national trade group representing for-profit skilled nursing facilities this week called on the federal government to streamline its policy on Medicare eligibility for nursing home care, arguing that officials already have the legal authority to do so. American Health Care Association president and CEO Mark Parkinson formally asked Centers for Medicare & Medicaid […]

Verma: CMS Should Reduce Survey Frequency for Top Nursing Homes, Look Beyond Monetary Penalties

The leader of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Wednesday continued her public push for greater nursing home oversight, promising that the agency will use data to target states with suspiciously low rates of citations — while also expressing a desire to reduce survey frequencies for top performers. CMS administrator Seema Verma […]

Unpacking the New Therapy Contract Math for Skilled Nursing Providers Under PDPM

Faced with a sea change in the Medicare reimbursement system for nursing homes, operators have spent the last year asking a key question about their therapy offerings: outsource or in-house? And if the answer is outsource, what will that relationship look like moving forward in unfamiliar payment landscape? There’s no one correct answer for contract […]

OIG Calls on New York to Crack Down on Nursing Home Safety

The federal government’s top health care watchdog has called on state officials in New York to beef up enforcement of nursing home safety rules after uncovering multiple violations in a recent audit. The Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) this month released a report accusing the Empire State […]

Investing in Skilled Nursing Tech Isn’t Worth Much Without Employee, Leadership Acceptance

Data continues to be the watchword in a skilled nursing marketplace where hospitals and other referral partners demand increasingly concrete information about post-acute outcomes. In response, numerous tech companies have stepped into the fray to provide potential solutions — from data analytics tools that can identify serious health issues before they escalate to a hospitalization, […]

Colliers: Fast-Growing IRF Sector Represents ‘Attractive Investment Option’ in Post-Acute

The inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) represents the fastest-growing asset class within the post-acute care spectrum, according to a new report from real estate services firm Colliers International — thus making it a prime target for investors in the overall real estate space. “Freestanding IRFs tend to have a healthy operating margin, and help expedite the […]

Skilled Nursing Providers Could See Slight Changes in Value-Based Purchasing Penalties, Bonuses After CMS Error

Skilled nursing operators may notice some small changes to their final bonuses or penalties under a key value-based payment initiative after federal officials acknowledged a slight error in their calculations. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Thursday announced that it incorrectly calculated its scores for the SNF Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) initiative, according […]

State Targets Low-Occupancy Nursing Homes for Steep Medicaid Cuts

Lawmakers in the state of Connecticut have targeted nine facilities for major Medicaid cuts due to low occupancy, raising concerns about access issues from operators and employees alike — and highlighting the occasionally paradoxical relationship between skilled nursing usage and funding. The nine properties face a total of $6 million in lost Medicaid reimbursements, the […]

Despite Pressures, ACOs’ Three-Day Stay Waivers Could Emerge as Skilled Nursing Secret Weapons

Among the new payment models sweeping the skilled nursing industry, accountable care organizations (ACOs) tend to vex nursing home operators the most. These groups, which encourage cost savings by holding providers up and down the continuum accountable for overall health spending, are typically seen as length-of-stay depressants. The hospitals and physician organizations that generally lead […]

I-SNP Exec: Skilled Nursing Operators Must Approach Insurers to Succeed — But Few Do

Skilled nursing operators frequently bemoan the shorter lengths of stay and lower daily payment rates for Medicare Advantage residents, but the leader of one plan says it’s also up to providers to present novel ideas to insurance executives. Before taking the CEO role at the nursing-home focused Longevity Health Plan earlier this year, René Lerer […]

How Avenue Development Built Two High-End Skilled Nursing Facilities — From Research to a $38M Deal

When LTC Properties (NYSE: LTC) announced a $38 million deal to buy a pair of high-end transitional rehab facilities in Missouri, it marked the end of a multi-year planning process that saw a skilled nursing developer try to plug holes in the area’s health care system. The transaction covered a completed skilled nursing facility in […]

Good Sam Sells Three More Skilled Nursing Facilities in Illinois, Iowa

The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society continues to strategically trim its post-acute portfolio, selling off a trio of skilled nursing campuses along the Illinois-Iowa border. The three properties had a total of 214 skilled nursing beds and 65 independent and senior living apartments, according to Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors — which brokered the deal […]

Judge Approves $1M Penalty in Record-Setting HUD Skilled Nursing Default

An administrative law judge approved a nearly $1 million penalty against the owner of an Illinois nursing home chain responsible for the worst default in the history of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s loan program for health care facilities, the New York Times reported on Friday. Under the terms of the deal, Zvi […]

Summit Healthcare REIT Promotes Pair of Execs, Bringing New CEO and COO

Summit Healthcare REIT on Thursday announced the promotion of two top executives to new posts. President Kent Eikanas will now serve as CEO of the Lake Forest, Calif.-based real estate investment trust (REIT), which has holdings in both skilled nursing facilities and senior housing. Eikanas had held the title of president since September 2012, and […]

Treating Depression Could Emerge as a PDPM ‘Linchpin’ — Both for Payments and Better Outcomes

Accurately diagnosing and treating depression could bring significant rewards for operators under the new Medicare payment model for nursing homes — both financially and clinically. Training frontline caregivers to notice the signs of depression among residents of skilled nursing facilities will be vital to success under the coming Patient-Driven Payment Model (PDPM), according to Zimmet […]

Resident Advocate: Nursing Home Fines Must Increase to Improve Care, Prevent Harm

Between a new Medicare payment model and increased scrutiny on nursing home safety from the federal government, 2019 may go down as a watershed year for skilled nursing regulations. But at least one patient advocate says the government — particularly under the Trump administration — hasn’t gone far enough. Toby Edelman, a senior policy attorney […]

Lawsuit Over Three-Day Stay Rule for Medicare SNF Coverage Begins as Verma Promises: ‘We’re Listening’

A class-action lawsuit challenging the Medicare eligibility rules for skilled nursing coverage will finally get its day in court this week — shortly after the administrator in charge of the program publicly questioned the status quo. The trial over the lawsuit, first filed in 2011, began Monday in a Hartford federal courtroom, according to an […]