‘Access Crisis Unfolding’: Nursing Home Operators, Advocates Warn of Dire Effects from Biden’s Order on Staffing

President Joe Biden’s executive order that aims to implement minimum staffing standards and tie Medicare payments to staff retention drew frustration from nursing home industry operators and advocates, who said that the well meaning directives would likely compound the staffing crisis and lead to closures unless policies are aimed at resolving its root causes, and […]

Texas Bill Aims to Enforce Staff Training for Alzheimer’s in Long-Term Care

A house bill that joins similar efforts underway in other states to require Alzheimer’s training in long-term care is making its way through the Texas legislature.  House Bill SB 1673 would force assisted living facilities to provide their workers with four hours of Alzheimer’s and dementia training before handling patients with those conditions. Sponsored by […]

Congress to CMS: Build Staffing Mandate into 2024 Medicare Payment Rule

Democratic lawmakers this week penned a letter urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to ensure workers aren’t overburdened with high caseloads and inadequate support. The legislators, led by U.S. Representatives Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Lloyd Doggett (D-Tex.), also called on CMS to establish robust nursing home staffing standards to ensure residents receive […]

CMS Finds Deepening Backlog in Nursing Home Inspections – 4,500-Plus Facilities Are Overdue

As the nursing home industry continues to recover from the last several years of the pandemic, annual inspections have fallen by the wayside. According to federal data from mid-February, about 4,500 of the nation’s 15,000 nursing homes were overdue for an inspection. More than 1,500 of those facilities were last inspected before the public health […]

Montana Joins Other States in Pushing Nursing Home Medicaid Rates as Federal Funding Dries Up

States are in the midst of considering changes to their Medicaid policies as federal funding gets phased out with the end of the public health emergency, and some states are hoping to rebase Medicaid reimbursement rates for nursing homes to mitigate challenges facing the sector. Montana is one of those states. After a study commissioned […]

Federal Lawmakers: Emergency Preparedness at Nursing Homes Inadequate, ‘A Warning Sign’

Nursing homes are in need of improving their emergency-preparedness plans to face extreme weather, a report developed by the Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Special Committee on Aging shared Thursday. In identifying extreme weather events that occurred in 17 states since 2018 that forced evacuations at long-term care facilities, or led to resident […]

States Dock Heavy Fines for Missing Staff Vaccinations at Nursing Homes

Some states are coming under fire for failing to cite nursing homes for violations of the vaccine mandate for staff. Skilled nursing facilities and nursing homes are among the myriad of healthcare providers where staff are required to be vaccinated under the Biden administration’s public health mandates aimed to increase vaccinations nationwide. About 750 nursing […]

Arizona Bill Aims to Privatize the Survey Process for Nursing Homes 

As federal entities continue to call for significant changes to nursing home operators and oversight through surveys, Arizona appears to be the first state intent on outsourcing this crucial tool. The legislature in Arizona may let nursing homes and assisted living facilities be surveyed by a third party to conduct annual and complaint surveys – […]

Research Indicates Five-Star Quality Rating System Needs Revision

After examining data from recertification surveys and complaint investigations from 15,499 investigations, a JAMA study found that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Five-Star Quality Rating System may be in need of revision. Consumers use the Five-Star Quality Rating System to make nursing home choices, which incorporates data from both recertification surveys and complaint […]

Connecticut Latest State to Propose Higher Staffing Ratios, Transparency for SNFs – But Without Funding Support

Following states like Illinois and New York, Connecticut is the latest state to introduce a bill aimed at transforming staffing and requiring transparency changes among area nursing homes. Proposed changes would apply to the more than 200 nursing homes across the state. One change involves boosting minimum staffing hours from 3 to 4.1 per person […]

Federal Bill Aims to Aid Nursing Home Labor Shortage with TNA Program Extension 

A bill that aims to address staffing shortages in nursing homes by allowing temporary nursing aides (TNAs) awaiting certification to remain in the workforce past typical time limits was reintroduced on Wednesday. Sponsored by Republican U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie of Kentucky and Democratic Rep. Madeleine Dean of Pennsylvania, the bill supports flexibilities implemented during the […]

Bill Targeting Minimum Staffing Standards, Value-Based Purchasing Gains Traction in Virginia 

Nursing homes that provide a minimum of 3.08 hours of daily care per resident will qualify for higher reimbursements from Medicaid, according to a bill that is gaining traction in the Virginia legislature. Medicaid pays for 60% of Virginia nursing home residents, although Virginia is one of 15 states that do not set minimum staffing […]

FDA Grants Accelerated Approval for Alzheimer’s Drug, CMS Coverage at Issue

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, the second of a new category of medications. Given the high prevalence of dementia within nursing homes, any new treatments for Alzheimer’s or similar conditions would shape care and services that providers deliver. Nearly 50% of nursing home residents have a […]