The House of Representatives on Friday passed a $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package that contains $200 million for the federal government’s infection-focused inspections of nursing homes — while otherwise mostly passing skilled nursing facilities by. President Trump signed the bill into law later Friday afternoon. The bill, known as the CARES Act, set aside that […]
Category: Legislation
The Senate’s landmark $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package contains a temporary 2% bump on Medicare fee-for-service reimbursements across the board, but aside from increased funding for the federal government’s infection-control crackdown, skilled nursing facilities were largely left out of the post-acute relief. The bill, which the Senate passed by a vote of 96-0 on Wednesday […]
Telemedicine is drawing national attention from lawmakers as officials look to safeguard health care workers and patients — while nursing homes anxiously monitor infection-control policies to protect vulnerable residents from the global pandemic of the coronavirus. Expanded Medicare coverage of telehealth services was included in the recent $8.3 billion emergency bill, offering national aid in […]
Early returns for the new Medicare Part A reimbursement system for nursing home operators appear positive, but some industry advocates warn that more Part B pain could be coming over the next few years, both for therapists and skilled nursing providers. And although the exploding senior population represents heavy demand for therapy services, some leaders […]
Though the early days of 2020 have brought some optimism around the state of the post-acute and long-term care industry, executives in the space continue to emphasize that the coming 12 months could bring make-or-break decisions for operators and their partners. One day after American Health Care Association (AHCA) CEO Mark Parkinson told SNN 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 […]
In perhaps the least surprising news of the year, the new Medicare payment model for nursing homes dominated the list of most-read stories on Skilled Nursing News in 2019. But the Patient-Driven Payment Model (PDPM), for all its impact on the post-acute and long-term care space over the last 12 months, wasn’t the only story […]
If Sen. Chuck Grassley has his way, a new oversight bill for nursing homes will be introduced this month — one that reauthorizes the Elder Justice Act and sets up new funding for various programs in the 2010 law, passed as part of the Affordable Care Act. Elder abuse is a long-standing issue for Grassley, […]
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 […]
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 […]