Nursing homes to feds: Expand COVID-19 testing to all, pay $120K per facility, increase PPE shipments
By
James M. Berklan
May 05, 2020
The nation’s largest nursing home and assisted living association has turned up the pressure on the federal government, sending formal letters to federal authorities Monday asking for priority COVID-19...
McKnight’s 40 for 40: Mary Ousley
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 13, 2020
To paraphrase an old television commercial, when Mary Ousley talks, people listen.
COVID-19 survey: Nursing homes’ top strategies for ‘keeping spirits up’
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 02, 2020
McKnight’s Long-Term Care News asked nursing home leaders what they were doing to “help keep spirits up” during the coronavirus pandemic and, boy, did they tell us.
Feds’ ‘dramatic expansion’ of telehealth widens payment coverage; HIPAA rules are relaxed for COVID-19
By
James M. Berklan
Mar 18, 2020
The federal government removed Medicare restrictions for telehealth coverage nationwide Tuesday while also temporarily relaxing HIPAA obligations for providers. The latter opens the door for doctors’...
‘The bloodbath isn’t over’: Nursing home closures
By
James M. Berklan
Feb 26, 2020
Luckily, food wasn’t the main focus of a business lunch Monday. I lost much of my appetite before I stepped foot in the restaurant. The gathering took place at a respected dining establishment in a nearby...
A ‘Signing Day’ I’d like to see on every campus
By
James M. Berklan
Feb 12, 2020
Let’s celebrate students in a new way more often.
CMS ‘interested’ in patient satisfaction scores for nursing homes
By
James M. Berklan
Jan 22, 2020
Federal regulators say that nursing homes could eventually come to see patient satisfaction scores included in Five Star Quality Ratings and on the Nursing Home Compare website.
These caregiving heroes need a tune, and some words to go with
By
James M. Berklan
Jan 08, 2020
If anyone deserves their own triumphant chorus, it’s clearly these professional caretakers. America agrees.
Editor’s Desk: Shameful ‘abuse’ icon debuts without regret
By
James M. Berklan
Dec 05, 2019
And so the day came when some 5% of nursing homes in the country were branded with their own “Scarlet Letter.” The letter, of course, was in the form of an open-palmed “stop” icon in a red circle.
Here’s some year-end guidance that you’ve been waiting for, LTC leaders
By
James M. Berklan
Dec 03, 2019
It’s wholly unintentional, but we find ourselves one-upping the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week.