California’s attorney general is pushing back against a proposed federal rule aimed at removing excessive burdens for long-term care providers.
California AG Xavier Becerra on Monday submitted a comment letter on the proposed rule for requirements of participation to the Department of Health and Human Services, which houses the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Becerra called the proposed rule an “unlawful step backward for the health and safety of California’s most vulnerable residents” and said it threatens the “quality of care offered in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.”
There are more than 1,200 skilled nursing facilities in California that serve about 400,000 seniors, according to Becerra, and those facilities could save significantly under the rules. Federal officials who proposed the changes said they would save $616 million annually for providers nationwide, mostly through reduced administrative burdens.
He argued the rule violates the Social Security and Affordable Care acts and walks back on previously established quality standards. He also said the regulatory changes could result in increased Medicaid spending for long-term care in the state.
“If finalized in substantially similar form, the Rule would harm an ever-growing population of nursing home residents … I urge HHS and CMS to withdraw the Proposed Rule,” Becerra wrote.
The third phase of CMS-proposed requirements for participation in the Medicaid or Medicare programs, arrives Nov. 28, with some recent notable exceptions. The proposal removes several requirements that have been deemed unnecessary, obsolete or excessively burdensome on long-term care facilities.
The deadline to submit comments on the proposed rule was Monday.
