I’m glad science is back in the driver’s seat. After all, we listen to plumbers for pipe problems and mechanics for car problems. So why not scientists for COVID-19?
McCain is the cat’s meow, pet owners say
By
Liza Berger
Jul 08, 2008
Stop the presses. Some startling poll findings emerged this week: Pet owners favor John McCain over Barack Obama. Gasp! Could it be true? Indeed. Animal proprietors prefer McCain to Obama 42% to 37%, according...
Cheer up! Old age is on its way
By
Liza Berger
Jun 04, 2010
So it turns out that getting old isn’t so bad after all. Why? We actually become happier as we age.
Nursing-home evictions raise bigger questions
By
Liza Berger
Aug 11, 2008
Some disturbing news appeared last week in The Wall Street Journal. The highly respected newspaper found that nursing homes are evicting long-term, frail residents—many on Medicaid—to make room for...
Five-star fiasco
By
Liza Berger
Dec 18, 2008
What do nursing homes want for Christmas? Something that they are unlikely to receive: a new five-star rating system. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services presented them with a most unwelcome holiday...
Private equity’s reckoning
By
Liza Berger
Aug 12, 2020
In my second installment of “Things we can learn from the pandemic,” COVID-19 may force private equity to take a good, hard look at what it is doing in the skilled nursing space.
Star rating system: Expedia for nursing homes?
By
Liza Berger
Jun 20, 2008
Yes, you too could be the Four Seasons of nursing homes. As we all know by now, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans to create a five-star quality rating system for facilities (see stories...
Card-check and transparency and arbitration acts—Oh my!
By
Liza Berger
Mar 20, 2009
If you’ve been staying on top of long-term care news, you’ve probably noticed that lawmakers have been busy lately. Lots of bills have been introduced in recent days—some drawing praise, others scorn...
Note to states: Don’t take out your problems on Medicaid
By
Liza Berger
Oct 29, 2008
As if it comes as a surprise, things are not looking too good for state Medicaid programs. The July through September statistics from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities tell the story. After adjustment...
COVID-19 fact finding
By
Liza Berger
Jul 08, 2020
Several months after the first outbreak in a nursing home near Seattle, we have finally gotten our arms around some indisputable facts regarding this virus,