Nursing home operators in Florida will see an 8% increase in their Medicaid funding, or $247.8 million – that amounts to $470,000 per facility. Gov. Ron DeSantis this week signed the Focus on Florida’s Future Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025, which included the significant Medicaid funding increase to support the growing demand for caregivers and […]
Operators have been opting for different payer sources other than Medicare Advantage plans given its persistent challenges. Medicare Advantage’s lower reimbursement rates compared to traditional Medicare and higher administrative burdens tied to prior authorizations and payment denials, have caused operators to seek even Medicaid as an alternative payer, emboldening efforts by advocacy groups to push […]
Expenditures for Nursing facilities and continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) is expected to reach $237.6 billion in 2026, and $337.4 billion by 2032, according to data released Wednesday. Nursing homes and CCRCs have been increasing steadily since 2021, states a report prepared by the Office of the Actuary (OACT) at the Centers for Medicare & […]
Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo testified Tuesday before a Congressional subcommittee about the state’s handling of nursing home patients during the pandemic, including a controversial directive that prevented residents from being denied admission based solely on their Covid diagnosis. The interview also follows a 2022 audit by the state comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, alleging […]
Renovating nursing homes to uplift the resident experience can improve not only property value and overall quality of care, but also regulatory compliance. Staffing and retention are ever-present roadblocks at nursing facilities, and upgrading the overall atmosphere can actually help alleviate some of these roadblocks, with caregivers wanting to be in a building that’s easier […]
Planned power outages in response to wildfire threats are leaving some nursing homes in the dark – one facility in Boulder, Colorado was left without power for 28 hours. Generators kept running the facility’s oxygen machines, most refrigerators and freezers, hallway lights and Wi-Fi for phones and computers, according to a report originally from KFF. […]
Nursing home operator Next Step Healthcare reached a $4 million settlement with the Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, in what is the largest nursing home settlement ever reached in the state. As part of the settlement, Next Step will pay $4 million to resolve allegations, improve staffing levels and agree to independent compliance monitors. […]
As nursing homes take up artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology advances as part of operations, it’s crucial to not only involve nurses in its implementation, but to bring to their attention AI’s limitations. Besides the fact that minimizing nurse involvement in such decisions can give rise to general distrust among clinical staff as well […]
Managed care’s growth across all health care settings, including nursing homes, has pushed reimbursement rates lower, and operators are implementing strategies to counter the situation. For starters, operators expressed the need to be well equipped for negotiating better rates with managed care organizations (MAOs). And, coming armed with cost of care data to the negotiating […]
The Ensign Group (Nasdaq: ENSG) has added two skilled nursing properties to its portfolio, bringing its overall portfolio to 312 skilled nursing facility operations, inclusive of 29 senior living operations, across 14 states. The latest acquisitions were 32-bed Wellsprings of Gilbert in Arizona, and 58-bed The Springs at St. Andrews Village in Aurora, Colorado. Ensign […]
CareTrust REIT (NYSE: CTRE) on Monday announced two strategic transactions totaling $180 million, five- and eight-facility skilled nursing portfolios both located across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. The larger transaction, which consists of 1,011 beds and 150 assisted living beds, was funded by a $90 million senior mortgage loan and $9 million preferred equity investment, the […]
Nursing home closures and bankruptcies continue among many states, putting pressure on existing nursing homes to take on extra residents even as the workforce shortage persists and challenging staffing requirements are on the horizon. The latest closure in Pennsylvania led to the evacuation of Mountain View Care and Rehabilitation Center residents on Friday, relocated to […]
As part of already proposed legislation, U.S. Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania is pushing for an injection of billions of dollars to increase the direct care workforce and improve pay. Casey’s Long-Term Care Workforce Support Act could be viewed as a funding mechanism for the Biden administration’s federal nursing home staffing mandate, which would […]
Lawyers and other leaders in the nursing home sector believe the American Health Care Association’s (AHCA) lawsuit is strong, framed well and likely to succeed, with a decision possible by early 2025. An injunction from the plaintiffs – all 5-Star facilities located in Texas along with AHCA – regarding staffing rule’s implementation should follow in […]
Nursing and residential care facilities had the highest wage growth of any health care setting in April at 4.5% year over year, which was followed by ambulatory health care services at 3.2% and hospitals at 3.1%. The sector also added 9,300 jobs in April despite a “cool month” for the economy, according to economic indicators […]
LeadingAge joins a slew of other nursing home industry voices in urging a multi-faceted strategy following the finalization of the federal minimum staffing rule a month ago. The advocacy group is pursuing legislative, legal and regulatory avenues to stop the mandate and build the workforce. Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge, said, “We […]
In a recent move to increase transparency in the nursing home industry, one state attorney is taking on operating giant The Ensign Group (Nasdaq: ENSG), with plans to invalidate secret arbitration and block any similar agreements in the future. Kris Mayes, Arizona Attorney General, is seeking to intervene in a lawsuit involving Sun West Choice […]
The “super SNF,” an insider term used for nursing homes that serve mostly high acuity patients, is evolving to enhance its specialized function, and leaders in the space believe it will be a replacement – or at least a supplement – for long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs) and inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs). The latest changes […]
Scaling up by empowering regional operators has long been a successful strategy for nursing home giant PACS Group (NYSE: PACS), but this growth hasn’t come at the expense of losing its identity nor by over-leveraging itself using high-interest debt, according to CEO Jason Murray. For PACS, which debuted on Wall Street in April, its steady […]
More nursing homes owned by Centers Health Care are being investigated for alleged Medicaid fraud, while also having been plagued with serious safety concerns. The 240-bed Hammonton Center and Deptford Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare in New Jersey, join other facilities owned by Centers Health that are under investigation, according to a report from the […]
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