Nursing facility fines down by nearly a third since Trump took office
By
Marty Stempniak
Mar 18, 2019
Nursing facilities have seen their fines drop by about 31% during the Trump administration, according to a Kaiser Health News analysis, released on Friday.
CMS grants skilled nursing $820 million raise in final payment rule
By
Marty Stempniak
Aug 01, 2018
As anticipated, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued its final rule for paying skilled nursing providers on Tuesday. Providers will see an $820 million raise for fiscal 2019, which begins...
Nursing home stakeholders fire back at Medicare ‘drifting toward disaster’ claims
By
Marty Stempniak
Jan 18, 2019
Provider advocates came out swinging Thursday over a McKnight’s story relaying a former government official’s claims that nursing homes share the blame in Medicare’s alleged “drifting toward disaster.”
Provider claims victory in ‘blockbuster’ battle with state regulators
By
Marty Stempniak
Oct 26, 2018
A Maryland skilled care provider has settled a long-running court dispute with state officials, agreeing to halt operations and pay back a small portion of what state regulators had originally sought.
Some Medicare payment models will be mandatory, CMS says
By
Marty Stempniak
Apr 29, 2019
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services wants to create more mandatory alternative payment models in the Medicare program to speed up the transition to value-based care. Providers are saying “not...
MedPAC calls for lower SNF pay rates; provider advocates fire back
By
Marty Stempniak
Jun 19, 2018
Provider advocates returned fire on Monday, after the group of experts, which advises Congress on Medicare policy, said future pay bumps for skilled nursing should be nixed.
Congressional leader fears false diagnosing, wants more scrutiny of nursing homes’ antipsychotic use
By
Marty Stempniak
Feb 05, 2019
The leader of a congressional committee overseeing Medicare wants to put nursing homes’ use of antipsychotics under the microscope.
Move over mom, skilled nursing also has a reason to celebrate this Sunday
By
Marty Stempniak
May 07, 2019
Sunday, May 12, will mark the start of National Skilled Nursing Week (formerly known as National Nursing Home Week).
Social media may help ease depression in elderly, even while it’s crushing everyone else’s soul
By
Marty Stempniak
Oct 25, 2018
In the face of this deadly opioid epidemic, I’ve seen all sorts of alternative methods floated to help remedy patients’ pain. Be it, laughing gas, yoga, sugar pills or exercise. Now researchers are...
New York Times details epidemic of nursing home closures across rural America
By
Marty Stempniak
Mar 05, 2019
A prominent front-page story in Monday’s New York Times confirms what many industry insiders have dreaded for years: Rural nursing homes hanging on by a thread are closing in waves across the country.