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 […]
Category: Legislation
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 […]
A new piece of legislation before Congress seeks to protect individuals in nursing homes by implementing more stringent staffing protocols — including increased clinical hours and training — among other safety measures for residents. Co-sponsored by Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois and Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut — both Democrats — the Quality Care for […]
After already losing 20 nursing homes over the course of the last year-plus, one in four facilities remain at risk of closure in Massachusetts, according to a long-term care trade group in the state. Citing a new report from advisory firm CLA, the Massachusetts Senior Care Association late last week warned that 95 of the […]
When Lantis Enterprises, Inc., a South Dakota health care management firm, took over certain properties from the bankrupt Welcov Healthcare on September 1, 2018, the operators didn’t expect that a prior fraud claim — based on allegations of excessive and improper Medicare billing dating back to 2012 — would haunt their company name and potential […]
A new piece of legislation before Congress would expand nursing homes’ ability to perform detailed background checks on potential employees, according to its sponsor. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, earlier this week announced a bill to improve health care worker hiring practices in an effort to reduce elder abuse. The initiative — known […]
Though it’s too soon to tell what effect the new Medicare payment model for nursing homes will have on resident outcomes, the head of a leading industry trade group says operators will deserve everything regulators can dream up if changing treatment patterns lead to worse care. “If we don’t do better, we should be crushed […]
A bipartisan pair of lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bill that its supporters say would ease persistent staffing strains on the nation’s nursing home operators. The Nursing Home Workforce Quality Act would remove a mandatory two-year ban on certified nursing assistant (CNA) training that the federal government currently levies on skilled nursing facilities that have […]
The attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, and Oregon jointly pushed back on the delay of regulations for nursing homes, a move that came at the same time as similar criticism by California’s top attorney. The comment letter was filed September 16, the deadline for submitting comments on the proposed rule delaying […]
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra criticized a proposed federal rule that would delay certain aspects of Phase 3 of the Requirements of Participation for skilled nursing facilities, arguing that the move would roll back key protections for residents. Announced in July, the proposed rule seeks to reduce reporting and paperwork burdens through delaying certain parts […]
A skilled nursing and assisted living facility at the Central Prison in Raleigh, N.C., is sitting vacant amid a budget standoff — despite high levels of state spending on health care for inmates over age 50, according to a report from North Carolina Health News this week. The 46-bed, five-floor facility was converted from mental […]
The past several years have seen sweeping overhauls of nursing home enforcement on the federal level, and the Medicare program’s top clinical officer says her agency isn’t done beefing up its efforts. Dr. Kate Goodrich, the chief medical officer for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), promised that more changes are coming to […]
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 […]
Four employees of the Hollywood Hills nursing home in Florida will face criminal charges related to the deaths of a dozen residents due to heat exposure after Hurricane Irma in 2017. The New York Times first reported plans to charge the employees, a group that includes the administrator, a charge nurse, and two other nurses, […]
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 […]
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 […]
Omega Healthcare Investors (NYSE: OHI) made a major splash this week with the announcement of a planned $735 million skilled nursing acquisition, though executives also reported that a troubled tenant in Texas hasn’t generated any revenue for the real estate investment trust (REIT) yet this quarter. Daybreak Venture met its rent obligations under a deferral […]
Omega Healthcare Investors (NYSE: OHI) on Tuesday announced plans to pick up 58 skilled nursing facilities in a 60-building deal valued at $735 million. The Hunt Valley, Md.-based real estate investment trust (REIT) agreed to the deal on July 26, Omega reported this week, though it remains subject to approval by the Department of Housing […]
The state of Pennsylvania should adopt stronger policies for vetting nursing home operators in the wake of the Skyline Healthcare collapse, a report issued Tuesday from Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale recommended. “Nearly 90,000 Pennsylvanians live in more than 700 nursing homes throughout the state, and they represent just a fraction of our aging population,” […]
Background checks for staff and better reporting for nursing home abuse loomed large in a U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing held Tuesday, with consumer advocates and industry representatives confirming the findings of a new report that revealed oversight gaps by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) around nursing home abuse. The report, […]