Why jurors might overlook gruesome testimony against nursing homes
By
Tim Mullaney
Aug 05, 2014
In reporting on lawsuits against long-term care providers, I’ve spoken to plaintiffs’ lawyers who rival Stephen King in their descriptions of misery and gore. So I understand why nursing home...
Bed taxes and other troubling compromises
By
John O'Connor
Aug 04, 2014
As my colleague Tim Mullaney reported last week, the Government Accountability Office has been taking a closer look at Medicaid bed taxes lately. And the investigative arm of Congress doesn’t seem...
Want to know what ‘secrets’ you’ll soon be sharing? Buy a car
By
John O'Connor
Aug 01, 2014
As never before, data collection and analytics have become part and parcel of long-term care. Even midsize and smaller operators are sifting through amazingly granular information to document strengths,...
There’s an app for that, but should there be?
By
Elizabeth Newman
Jul 31, 2014
Some apps – like those that are meant to track blood pressure or give medication reminders – are geared toward your future residents. And that’s where the trouble can arise, according...
Could you make money if Mom’s nursing home does a good job?
By
Tim Mullaney
Jul 29, 2014
A man recently raised more than $51,000 … to make potato salad. And in a similar type of online campaign, senior living investment company Mainstreet raised more than $1.6 million in four weeks through...
Finally, a Medicaid funding plan that actually makes sense
Jul 28, 2014
When politicians talk about Medicaid funding and nursing homes these days, an unsettling theme often emerges: the need to spend less of the former on the latter.
What are the scouts saying about your long-term care organization?
By
John O'Connor
Jul 25, 2014
There is no draft in senior living, nor really a need for one. But what if its three most dominant players were to be sized up? How might the scouts rate skilled care, assisted living and home care, respectively?...
Butler County should take the addicts
By
Elizabeth Newman
Jul 24, 2014
It’s not a secret most county nursing homes are hemorrhaging money. That’s why I was intrigued by a Butler County (OH) proposal to allow heroin addicts to stay short-term in the county-owned...
Too late: Change is here for long-term care
By
James M. Berklan
Jul 23, 2014
If someone were to complain that long-term care has become a “same old, same old” scene, you might be inclined to agree. Staffing, reimbursement, over-regulation — they’re all ongoing...
Think you’re having a weird day? Take a lesson from the pros
By
John O'Connor
Jul 21, 2014
There are plenty of developments that can force you to reconsider the way you do business. Whether it’s merger/acquisition fallout, notable court rulings, additional regulatory guidance or legislation...