After the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced an immediate crackdown on nursing home compliance in the wake of the coronavirus, the agency laid out new expectations for updated inspections and surveys — with no exact timeline for resuming non-emergency surveys in sight. Although containing and preventing the coronavirus is the agency’s current […]
Category: Compliance
The leader of the nation’s largest organization of post-acute and long-term care facilities didn’t mince words about the dangers of the novel coronavirus during a nationally televised interview. The mortality rate for the 84-and-older population that makes up the vast majority of nursing home residents is well north of 15%, American Health Care Association (AHCA) […]
Skilled nursing industry leaders on Tuesday doubled down on federal guidelines restricting visits to facilities amid the spread of novel coronavirus, emphasizing the potential for a rapid, severe impact among those most vulnerable to COVID-19. The American Health Care Association publicly advised operators not to allow visitors unless absolutely necessary, its leaders said on a […]
UPDATE, Saturday, March 14: Since this article was published, the federal government has implemented stricter guidance for nursing home visits, effectively banning all non-essential visitors with very limited exceptions. Read about the most up-to-date guidance here. The federal government late Monday released an updated set of guidelines for nursing home operators amid the growing spread […]
Life Care Centers of America is tightening coronavirus prevention protocols with a heightened focus on visitor screenings, increased communication, and self-quarantines — as officials report that that 14 of the 17 COVID-19 deaths in Washington were related to its nursing facility in Kirkland, Wash. In the wake of the increased spread of the virus, the […]
As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) promises a crackdown on infection control inspections amid the coronavirus crisis, a new analysis finds that citations for infection-related violations are widespread in the industry. While officials and the media are taking a closer look at nursing homes’ compliance histories and amping up regulatory scrutiny, one […]
The Department of Justice this week announced the creation of a specialized task force targeting “grossly substandard care” in nursing homes, with both criminal and civil penalties on the table for owners and operators. About 30 individual facilities across nine states are already under investigation, the DOJ revealed in announcing its new National Nursing Home […]
Concerns for the frailest nursing home patients are on the rise after the coronavirus has taken the lives of four nursing home residents in Washington state. But despite confusion and anxiety related to fears of a potential pandemic in the U.S., some long-term care communities are banding together to update health policies and offer support […]
Fears over the spread of the novel coronavirus have brought short-term pain to the public markets and serious concerns over the potential effects on vulnerable elderly Americans — particularly in the wake of the first confirmed cases at a nursing home, reported this past weekend. But the leader of a major real estate investment trust […]
Concerns over the coronavirus are creeping into the nursing home sector, and industry experts are alerting operators and clinicians to take extra care, especially with the steady influx of frailer residents who are most susceptible. And while it may be too early to determine the eventual clinical and financial effects on the nursing home space, […]
Nursing home providers have long suffered from a worse public image than their peers along the senior housing and care continuum, with just the phrase itself conjuring images of a place that few people would ever choose to call home. It’s a problem that leaders with decades of experience in the space acknowledge could become […]
Diversicare Healthcare Services (OTC: DVCR) on Wednesday announced that it has formally closed the book on a Department of Justice investigation that has stretched for nearly eight years. The Brentwood, Tenn.-based skilled nursing provider will pay out the $9.5 million throughout the next five years to resolve a False Claims Act case regarding its therapy […]
Guardian Elder Care, a nursing home operator with more than 50 buildings, will pay $15.5 million to resolve federal accusations of medically inappropriate therapy practices, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday. The Brockway, Pa.-based Guardian faced allegations — brought by a pair of former employees — that the company pressured therapists to perform unnecessary services […]
Turning around a struggling nursing home is no easy task, and that task becomes more challenging when the skilled nursing facility’s struggles played out in national headlines. But for Philosophy Care Group, the challenges of taking over a troubled facility were mitigated by the presence of a strong staff — and by the knowledge that […]
A nursing home owner whose request to take over a pair of facilities was denied has struck back with a lawsuit, claiming that the authorities didn’t provide sufficient justification for their decision. Christopher Brogdon, an Atlanta-based owner of long-term care facilities, claims that Arkansas health officials made an “arbitrary and capricious” decision when they blocked […]
The federal government in late December released draft updates to a key set of paperwork for nursing home staff, revealing a potential change ahead for 2020 and beyond. The Minimum Data Set (MDS) will no longer include Section G, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in late December. “Please note that Section […]
Texas came in last place on a recent ranking of nursing home quality, an outcome that highlights the potential for overdevelopment in the Lone Star State. Based on the percentage of certified nursing home beds at four-and five-star facilities, Texas sat last at 51 on the consumer-finance website WalletHub’s list of states — and the […]
Two Congressional representatives introduced a bill on Thursday that would ban nursing homes from requiring — or even asking — residents to enter into mandatory, pre-dispute, binding arbitration agreements. The Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act, introduced by Democratic Reps. Linda Sánchez of California and Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, has support from a range of […]
A new law in New York State will require nursing home operators to provide detailed information about their physician privileges to residents as a prerequisite for admission. Signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo late last month, the update to the state’s public health law means that skilled nursing facilities can’t accept residents until they […]
Confusion continues to reign over the final set of new requirements for Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing homes, as the federal government disclosed that it will have very little ability to enforce the rules until the middle of next year. The third and last update to the Requirements of Participation (RoPs) is set to take effect […]
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