Believe it or not, the overall picture has been improving. And it might get even better in 2018.
Many LTC operators avoiding path to greatness?
By
John O'Connor
Apr 15, 2013
Billionaire Warren Buffet famously once said he had two rules for investing. The first was to make money. The second was to remember the first.
Federal regulators say they will back off nursing homes — at least for now
By
John O'Connor
Mar 10, 2014
If you’ve been involved in the long-term care field for any length of time, you should be quite familiar with how the government typically deals with bad news about nursing home care.
The disease that keeps on taking
By
John O'Connor
Aug 06, 2012
There is no way to tally the full cost of Alzheimer’s disease, a life robbing condition that now claims more than 5 million victims nationwide. But what can be put on a ledger sheet is sobering....
Pssst, here’s how the LTC lobby can eliminate the 3-day rule — and gain other Congressional perks
By
John O'Connor
Apr 19, 2013
You might not be old enough to remember the “Schoolhouse Rock” videos that aired between cartoons on Saturday mornings during the 1970s. One of my favorites was “I’m Just a Bill.”...
Sprinkler mandate fails to soak in
By
John O'Connor
May 25, 2012
Ben Franklin warned us that death and taxes are life’s only certainties. But if you run a long-term care facility, feel free to add regulations to that list. And it looks like a doozy of a looming...
When CMS turns carrots into sticks
By
John O'Connor
Sep 17, 2012
The revised hospital payment system technically hasn’t begun yet. But that doesn’t mean senior living operators shouldn’t find a dark cloud around this silver lining.
Antipsychotics in skilled care: Finding the right dose won’t be easy
By
John O'Connor
Aug 21, 2017
It happens all the time in politics: After dissatisfied voters throw the rascals out, new rascals push back way too hard. Could the same thing happen to the use of antipsychotics in skilled care?
Operators need to start asking a fundamental question: How they gonna pay?
By
John O'Connor
Feb 02, 2015
Conventional wisdom tells us that many existing options will not cut it as more discriminating customers arrive in long-term care. But maybe it’s also time for operators to start giving more thought...
Is this the year therapy caps finally get repealed? Probably not
By
John O'Connor
Feb 15, 2013
Earlier this week, we saw lawmakers again take aim at Medicare’s outpatient therapy caps. Rightfully so. Therapy caps are a dubious idea that ought to be given a decent burial.