CMS: Medicaid Funding a ‘Key Lever’ to Improving Nursing Home Quality, Staffing

In line with the Biden administration’s nursing home reform initiatives outlined in February, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is encouraging states to allocate Medicaid dollars toward improving staffing, and help the federal agency fully realize its goal of strengthening quality of care, accountability and transparency in the sector. The agency listed several […]

Operational and Financial Pressures Spur Skilled Nursing Deals, Cool Sellers’ Market

While the skilled nursing sector has seen a seller’s market the past couple years, brokers believe the pendulum is swinging the other way, toward more of an equilibrium and normalization of prices. Increased expenses tied to inflation, the ongoing staffing crisis and lackluster occupancy are all contributing to a less favorable market for sellers, while […]

CMS: Sunsetting TNA Program, PHE Waivers the Right Next Step for Nursing Homes

Following this month’s announcement to sunset certain waivers associated with the public health emergency (PHE) during the pandemic, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said it’s time to restore “minimum protections” to the nursing home setting, and “get back to normal operations.” Evan Shulman, director for the division of nursing homes under CMS […]

The Case for Immigration: Incentivizing U.S. Workers Won’t ‘Come Anywhere Close’ to Solving SNF Labor Crisis

The intersection of nursing home staffing and immigration has long been a conversation among operators before and during the pandemic, becoming even more pressing as industry leaders clamor to provide solutions to a historic workforce shortage. Incentivizing U.S. workers to take long-term care jobs won’t “come anywhere close” to filling the need the industry is […]

Staffing Agencies Create ‘Unfair Playing Field,’ Widen Gaps in Nursing Home Workforce

Aging service organizations, their members and Congress have sounded the alarm on opportunistic staffing agencies during the pandemic, opening the way for possible regulation surrounding the bustling industry. Other leaders in the space believe such legislation is an overreaction and unnecessary for one small segment of the health care staffing system. Marquette University’s College of […]

Nursing Home Industry Loses 2,500 Jobs in March, Deepening Workforce Crisis

The nursing home industry has lost 2,500 jobs in March alone, further deepening the labor crisis for the sector to a level not seen since 2007 – other health care settings, meanwhile, are faring better than they did pre-pandemic. That’s according to a March report published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and highlighted […]

National Nursing Home Spending Could Reach $273B by 2030

Nursing homes and continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) will ultimately experience an increase in expenditures from $174.2 billion in 2019 to $273 billion in 2030 – a fluctuation along that timeline reflects a drop in federal financial support and eventual moderation compared to what the industry received during the height of the pandemic in 2020. […]

CMS in ‘Full Court Sprint’ to Carry Out Biden’s Nursing Home Reforms

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is in a “full court sprint” toward fulfilling the Biden administration’s proposed nursing home reforms first announced last week, CMS Principal Deputy Administrator Jonathan Blum said during a stakeholder call on Thursday. Twenty-one initiatives across five strategic goals will have short-, mid- and long-term timelines for implementation, […]

Industry Leaders Request Meeting with Biden Administration on Nursing Home Reform

The American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) has asked for meetings with members of the Biden administration one week after the White House unveiled its sweeping nursing home reform proposal. The reforms, developed by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through its Centers for Medicare & Medicaid […]

The Trends That Will Shape Skilled Nursing in 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic continued to put pressure on an already strained skilled nursing industry in 2021. The next 12 months will be yet another test of resilience. Looking ahead to 2022, SNFs must stay nimble and inventive to not only survive but thrive. Private equity will continue to lead the nursing home transaction market pack, […]

‘The Tide Has Shifted Significantly’ for Nursing Home Financial Support

While nursing home operators have largely relied on help from the federal government by way of the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) and other mechanisms to get through the COVID-19 pandemic, some leaders have found more success refocusing advocacy efforts to state legislatures for future funding. “When the stimulus bill came out and passed with trillions […]

NIC Chief: ‘Obvious Advantages’ Exist in Senior Care Industry Despite Persisting Staffing Crisis

While the long-term care industry continues to see labor shortage pressures impact day-to-day operations and, at times, hinder the ability to improve occupancy levels, the impending decline in the availability of family caregivers could present future growth for congregate care settings. “On the one hand it’s challenging to find that staff, but on the other […]

Upwards of $7B Left Unspent in Provider Relief Fund, Urban Institute Analysis Finds

About $7.1 billion of the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) — which has totaled $178 billion over the past 18 months — has not been allocated, an October analysis from Washington, D.C.–based think tank Urban Institute determined. Skilled nursing facilities received $5 billion of allocated funds, the analysis found, and another $5 billion was devoted to […]

COVID-Related Wage Increases Haven’t Curbed Turnover

Staffing demands from COVID-19 spurred a national 7.13% increase in hourly wages for certified nursing aides (CNAs) this year according to a report published by the Hospital & Healthcare Compensation Service (HCS). The spike outpaced a 2020 increase of 4.76%. Non-certified nurse aides saw the highest raise at 7.98%, up from 4.24% in 2020. Despite […]