Indiana Nursing Homes Struggle with Delayed Payments Under Managed Medicaid

In the wake of Indiana’s transition to managed care for Medicaid services on July 1st, nursing home operators across the state are grappling with significant financial uncertainties due to delayed reimbursements, leaving many small facilities struggling to make payroll for their employees. Jeff Huffman, chief operations officer of The Strategies, a family-owned long-term care organization […]

Why the Medicaid Battle is Leading to More Quality-Based Nursing Home Payments

In the midst of lagging Medicaid reimbursements, more nursing providers are pushing states to launch quality incentive programs that are designed to enhance care and reward high-performing long-term care providers. Twenty-four states already have them in place, and the latest to join this trend is Pennsylvania. And to that end, nursing home providers in Pennsylvania […]

CarDon CEO: Automation Has Saved Us $2M, Leadership Hire from Outside Industry Key to Staffing Success

Kent Rodgers, president and CEO for CarDon & Associates, has seen some great challenges in his 17-year career at one of Indiana’s largest nursing home providers, but he’s also excited about being at the forefront of many transformations, some spurred by the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, the pandemic was raging when he became the company’s […]

Efforts to Rein In Nursing Home Temp Agencies Gain Ground After ‘Price Gouging,’ Other Troubling Practices

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. […]

Skilled Nursing Operators See Disaster Ahead As CMS Takes Aim at Medicaid-Boosting Provider Taxes

The federal government has proposed a rule governing the use of Medicaid supplemental payments for nursing homes that could have drastic effects on the reimbursement they receive. But the ripples of the rule don’t stop there. They could also overhaul the taxes that providers pay in several states — taxes that in turn contribute to […]

Proposed Medicaid Rule Would Mean Billions in Cuts, Waves of Nursing Home Closures

With skilled nursing facilities in multiple states facing significant shortfalls in their Medicaid reimbursement, supplemental payment programs used to bolster rates have become a lifeline. This is especially true for Texas and Indiana, both of which employ programs designed to get SNFs a higher rate for Medicaid services through varying mechanisms. Both states are motivated […]

Indiana Providers Adopt ‘Creative Scheduling’ Amid Workforce Pinch

Almost 100% of long-term care (LTC) providers in Indiana are asking staff to pick up additional hours, and more than 70% are asking employees to work double shifts or overtime, according to the preliminary findings from a survey from the Indiana Health Care Association/Indiana Center for Assisted Living (IHCA/INCAL) and other industry groups. They’re also […]

SNF Apprenticeship Program Will Take CNAs Beyond Book Learning

Apprenticeship programs are often associated with skilled laborers, such as carpenters or electricians. Now Marion County, Indiana, is going to test the concept in skilled nursing and other long-term care settings. The Indiana Health Care Association/Indiana Center for Assisted Living (IHCA/INCAL), a trade association representing the state’s long-term care facilities, and EmployIndy, a workforce development nonprofit in […]