CMS ‘naive’ about staffing minimum proposal details, professor claims
By
Jessica R. Towhey
Sep 20, 2023
The proposed federal staffing rule is “shockingly low” and will not measurably improve working and care conditions in nursing homes, consumer advocates claimed during a webinar that was conducted without...
Study: C. difficile transmission may hinge on individuals, not infection control tools
By
Kristen Fischer
Sep 19, 2023
A person’s biology may play more of a role in how Clostridioides difficile, or C. diff, spreads more so than healthcare facility preventive measures, a new study finds. This means that transmission of...
Senator renews call for surveyor funding after staffing rule release
By
Kimberly Marselas
Sep 15, 2023
An influential senator is renewing his calls for increased funding for state survey agencies, following the release earlier this month of a federal staffing minimum that would require extensive on-site...
Ask the care expert … about storing patient supplies
By
Sherrie Dornberger
Sep 12, 2023
We are having a debate about insulin pens and oxygen tubing and how to store them. Can you assist?
Adapt, or the desire for flexibility will drive workers away, providers warned in McKnight’s survey
By
Kimberly Marselas
Sep 06, 2023
Flexibility, already a major buzz word in the skilled nursing sector, is becoming an even more critical tool for hiring managers and building leaders in 2023, results of the latest McKnight’s Mood of...
[UPDATED] CMS issues first-ever nursing home staffing mandate
By
James M. Berklan
Kimberly Marselas
Sep 01, 2023
US nursing homes would have at least three years to provide a minimum of 0.55 hours of care by a registered nurse and 2.45 hours by a nurse aide per resident day under a first-ever proposed federal staffing...
With every SNF already under scrutiny, federal task force aims to cut healthcare spending, eliminate...
By
Jessica R. Towhey
Aug 30, 2023
A new task force from the US House Budget Committee will look at how to reduce healthcare spending, including ways to modernize healthcare and support access to care.
CMS 5-claim audits so far a ‘debacle’
By
Jessica R. Towhey
Aug 22, 2023
A new federal review process designed to lower the rate of improper government payments is sending provider staffs scurrying to justify their coding.
LeadingAge’s Sloan to Biden: Let’s talk so nursing homes don’t ‘shoulder entire burden’ on...
By
Kimberly Marselas
Aug 18, 2023
The leader of the nation’s second-largest nursing home advocacy group on Thursday asked the White House to convene a roundtable on improving job quality and expanding the worker pool in conjunction with...
Threat of devastating ‘bad debt’ grows as nursing home billing offices flounder
By
Kimberly Marselas
Aug 18, 2023
Unheard of staffing shortages in nursing home billing offices are leading to billing lapses and major uncollectible or ‘bad’ debt amounts. A $4 million case in Connecticut is fueling observers’ concerns...