HHS updates Provider Relief Fund reporting requirements
By
Danielle Brown
Oct 26, 2020
The federal government is no longer limiting providers’ use of Provider Relief Funds for covering lost revenue due to the coronavirus, according to an updated memo issued late last week.
iDocsWeb offers free telehealth access
By
Kimberly Marselas
Oct 21, 2020
Telemedicine platform developer iDocsWeb is offering its service free for one month to U.S. skilled nursing and other long-term care operators during the ongoing public health emergency. Access to the...
CMS: A quarter of Medicare recipients skipped needed healthcare during pandemic
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 21, 2020
Fully 21% of beneficiaries have forgone needed healthcare for something other than COVID-19. Nearly half say they did not want to risk being at a medical facility, according to CMS.
Filling the continuum of care gap in the COVID-19 era
By
Mark Fritz
Oct 20, 2020
Since the pandemic began, one thing has become abundantly apparent: There is a gap in the continuum of care for our nation’s most vulnerable patients. All too often, medically complex patients...
Resident poll reveals pandemic’s emotional toll: Frail elders need ‘something to live for’
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 02, 2020
A direct poll of nursing home residents in 36 states reveals a “drastic” reduction in social activities and a steep increase in reported loneliness. “Innovative distance socializing” may help address...
One person with COVID infects 4 to 5 others, double WHO estimates, study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 01, 2020
Each person who contracted the coronavirus early in the pandemic likely transmitted it to four or five others, according to a new analysis.
Keeping workers will be biggest struggle for nursing homes as pandemic persists, national policy expert...
By
Danielle Brown
Sep 30, 2020
Workforce challenges that have plagued long-term care operators during the coronavirus pandemic will get worse as the crisis further progresses this year, one of the nation’s top health policy analysts...
REIT leader: ‘Even more bullish than before’ on skilled nursing
By
James M. Berklan
Sep 29, 2020
Census pressure and uncertainties caused by COVID-19 continue to threaten the nursing home industry. But at least one major real estate investment trust CEO sees this period as a time of good opportunity...
Seniors are absent — but necessary — in COVID-19 vaccine trials, experts say
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 29, 2020
With older adults frequently excluded in COVID-19 clinical trials, investigators are concerned that they will ultimately be denied treatments and vaccines due to safety concerns.
Fully 40% of healthcare workers who test positive for COVID-19 show no symptoms, and about half of those who test positive are nurses, according investigators.