In the investment and finance side of skilled nursing, “regional” is commonly cited as a strength for an operator; the idea is that a strong presence in a concentrated geography allows for better relationships with hospitals and referral partners, physicians, and the community generally. But thinking regionally goes beyond the financial well-being of a facility, […]
A group of researchers developed a plan for health systems to support skilled nursing facilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, a plan that drew on lessons learned from the first major outbreak in the U.S. — which also happened to occur inside a skilled nursing facility. The three-phase approach was published in the Journal of the […]
The new Medicare payment model for skilled nursing facilities upends the old system of rehabilitation minutes driving reimbursement. With the Patient-Driven Payment Model (PDPM) scheduled for implementation on Oct. 1, 2019 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), SNFs and therapy providers alike are scrambling to catch up and prepare. In this changing landscape, […]
Skilled nursing providers frequently fret about the rise of narrow networks — the closed-off groups of high-performing nursing homes that hospitals have developed to ensure the best quality and reimbursement outcomes for their patients. But even the narrowest preferred skilled nursing networks have gaps that smart providers can fill, as long as they know where […]
Acute care providers have begun to take cues from insurance companies as they vet their post-acute partners. That’s according to a panel of case managers at the Senior Care Marketing Sales Summit (SMASH), held in Rosemont, Ill. Hospitals are penalized for every readmission, and as a result, acute care leaders are paying increasing attention to […]
The shifting tectonic plates in the skilled nursing landscape include a focus on value and a new payment system that puts the focus on medically complex patients and specialties. As providers try to adapt, some have chosen to go all in on a model of care that targets short-stay patients, flying in the face of […]
As the nursing home industry roils with changes ranging from the demographic to the governmental, one Illinois skilled nursing facility has put its focus on short-term rehab and transitional care patients. As a result, it depends more heavily on patient volume than most SNFs, necessitating as many referral sources as possible. And as management pursues […]
Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL) and ProMedica’s megadeal to acquire Quality Care Properties’ real estate has given the skilled nursing industry a boost, and could spur other similar deals in the future. As part of the $4.4 billion joint venture, non-profit hospital system ProMedica also picked up the struggling skilled nursing chain HCR ManorCare, QCP’s former primary […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) made some tweaks to the most recent bundled payments program that could boost participation by hospitals and physician groups — and skilled nursing providers should be ready, one expert told Skilled Nursing News. The Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Advanced (BPCI Advanced) initiative was first announced in […]
A collaborative initiative between nurse practitioners (NPs), doctors, and other medical staff to help patients discharged from a hospital to a skilled nursing facility lowered 30-day hospital readmissions. The Enhanced Care Program fosters collaboration between medical staff and patients in settings where nurse practitioners were available around the clock; medication reconciliation procedures were also followed at the […]
By the industry’s own definition, continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) include skilled nursing care — but there is a growing trend of developing similar communities that lack such care, according to a report from the commercial real estate services firm CBRE. In addition, some established CCRCs have either closed or significantly cut back on their […]
A program to provide hospital care in the home led to lower admissions to skilled nursing facilities for the patients who took part in it, a June 25 study found. But SNFs shouldn’t necessarily hit the panic button. The study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that just […]
Voluntary bundled payment programs might not be the best way of tackling spending on post-acute care (PAC), at least according to a research letter in the Journal of the American Medical Association. In fact, just 3.7% of PAC organizations took part in Model 3 of the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) initiative, which targets PAC […]
Patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans had a shorter rehabilitation stay in a skilled nursing facility and were more likely to be successfully discharged to the community, compared with patients on fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare, according to a new study published in PLOS Medicine. MA patients were also less likely to experience a 30-day hospital […]
Care transitions have become critically important for long-term care providers’ finances, but the world of skilled nursing facilities and home heath settings remains a mystery to many doctors at hospitals — and a pair of hospitalists think there are steps they can take to remove some of the confusion. Christine Jones of the University of […]
Despite concerns about the rise of home health in the era of value-based care, institutional post-acute care (PAC) use among Medicare beneficiaries actually rose between 2000 and 2015 — while discharges to the home fell over the same time period, according to a research letter published in JAMA. Specifically, the adjusted percentage of nearly 138 […]
Gaps remain in performance measures for post-acute care (PAC) and long-term care (LTC), particularly with regard to care coordination and information exchanges, according to a report from the non-partisan National Quality Forum’s (NQF) Measure Applications Partnership (MAP). Though performance measures are key for payment reform and sparking quality improvements, PAC and LTC settings have differing […]
Ask any forward-looking senior care expert about what the industry will look like in 30 years, and robots will likely emerge as an answer. Once artificial intelligence (AI) technology advances far enough, the logic goes, the skilled nursing industry could hypothetically solve its persistent staffing problems with cyborg assistants — a solution that’s already gained […]
As skilled nursing faculties grapple with low reimbursement rates and thin margins, a new scoring system for patients could help them allocate already scarce resources. It could be a useful tool as SNFs prepare for the SNF Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) program, under which the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will withhold 2% of […]
About 33% of seniors enrolled in the Medicare program have elected to use managed Medicare Advantage plans, and that number is expected to grow — potentially faster than the government thinks. The Congressional Budget Office has predicted growth in MA plans by about 4% per year, but Dan Mendelson, president of Avalere Health, says his […]
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