As the staffing minimum mandate inches closer to an official release, associations with ties to the nursing home industry continue to meet this week with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) – the government agency currently reviewing the proposal. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) transferred the proposal to OMB for review […]
Category: Legislation
A measure that allows certified nursing assistants to administer routine medications was signed into law in Florida on Friday. The CNAs will need training to become qualified medication aides (QMAs), a position that is intended to free up registered nurses to provide other needed care. The measure states that the aides would be limited to administering […]
It’s no secret that temporary staffing agencies have been both a boon and bane for the nursing home industry, providing necessary but very costly labor during the pandemic. Staffing problems have persisted long enough in the post-Covid era to warrant their use, but pricing practices have led to an outcry and push for state regulation. […]
Frequent nursing home closures and an access crisis across the country mean skilled nursing providers and unions must put aside their differences to find common ground in the post-pandemic age. However, achieving that alignment in the midst of seismic regulatory changes and legal challenges is another story. “We’re at a crossroads,” said Zach Shamberg, president […]
Nursing home industry leaders, more than 500 of whom gathered on Capitol Hill this week to influence workforce legislation, sounded alarms over the possibility of a minimum staffing rule at the conclusion of their meeting with policy makers Tuesday. At a time when the industry is still reeling from the effects of massive worker shortages […]
Minnesota lawmakers passed a bill to create a regulatory board to set compensation levels for nursing homes after declining to increase wages. The Minnesota Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board will set the initial wage limits and working hours by Aug. 1, 2024. Moreover, the board will be responsible for setting minimum employment standards, certifying worker organizations […]
As the Skilled Nursing News’ CLINICAL event in Washington D.C. came to a close last month, industry experts left with staffing concerns amid labor shortages and pending legislation on minimum staffing standards. However, operators also shared optimism over their innovations in corporate and clinical practices as they continued to confront higher acuity and tighter regulation. […]
The nursing home inspections system is underfunded and understaffed and needs federal assistance for alleviating inspection backlogs, or residents will remain in peril, experts and legislators said at a U.S. Senate hearing on Thursday. Officials from the long-term care ombudsman program as well as leaders from state inspections and regulatory bodies were among those who […]
Industry stakeholders and academic professionals are calling for better workforce development for direct care workers (DCWs) to address an unprecedented shortfall predicted in the coming decades. The solutions – ranging from professional development and recruitment methods, retention and career advancement methods – were published in the journal Health Affairs, and are drawn from an ongoing […]
Bad policy decisions, political acrimony and poor staffing were to blame for the alarming number of deaths in nursing homes, experts and legislators said in a U.S. House of Representatives hearing held on Wednesday. As Democratic and Republican lawmakers pointed fingers at each other, they agreed that among the many deficiencies, the must-admit policy deeply […]
Representatives in Hawaii and Alaska are pushing for legislation that would increase funding for skilled nursing facilities in both states. The Equitable Payments for Nursing Facilities Act of 2023, originally introduced in 2021, would authorize a cost-of-living adjustment to the Medicare payment formula for skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) in Hawaiʻi and Alaska to account for […]
As the public health emergency (PHE) comes to an end on May 11, industry leaders point out that nursing home operators are still in pandemic recovery mode, and that adjusting to the old way of doing business will not be easy. The PHE was declared in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and accompanied a wide […]
A Texas senate bill that will require nursing facilities to meet the state’s direct care payment ratio is advancing through the legislature. The proposed bill will force nursing facilities through Texas’s Medicaid managed care program to ensure that at least 80% of the medical assistance reimbursement amount received is spent on direct care expenses. It […]
On Monday, the federal government announced that it will end the COVID-19 vaccine requirements for healthcare employees at the end of the day on May 11, the same day that the COVID-19 public health emergency ends. “HHS and DHS announced today that they will start the process to end their vaccination requirements for Head Start […]
As those in the industry continue to adapt amid a historic workforce shortage and higher acuity patients, nursing staff are having to adapt in new ways. All nursing levels, and even dietary and housekeeping staff, need to work together to ensure a facility is providing the best patient care, despite the employee scarcity felt across […]
Stays at skilled nursing facilities without a prior hospital stay increased dramatically during the pandemic, but patient care costs did not see a major increase. That’s according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The study also found that SNF stays were linked with “potentially” faster discharge for […]
Nursing home operators may see a long phase-in for a federal minimum staffing requirement, and a host of exceptions, when more details finally come – but, it’s difficult to speculate on hypotheticals and may not help operators to dwell on the “what-ifs.” That’s according to Ensign Group (Nasdaq: ENSG) CEO Barry Port, who weighed in […]
The Minnesota House passed the Human Services budget proposal on Tuesday, which the House said is one of the largest investments in nursing homes in the state’s history. The bill, authored by Rep. Mohamud Noor (DFL-Minneapolis) Noor, would invest more than $10 million into critical access nursing facilities, he said, adding that value-based reimbursement in […]
The Louisiana House of Representatives unanimously voted to allow nursing homes to continue to operate even if their emergency preparedness and evacuation plans fail to meet state standards. The House Bill gets rid of a provision to state law – added just last year – that forces the state to automatically shut down a nursing […]
After visitation in nursing homes was shut down for non-emergency reasons at the onset of the pandemic, some states have taken action to ensure both post-acute and acute care settings allow in-person visits in future – even during a pandemic. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a new bill into law this week to codify visitation […]
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