States should like bill’s financing of Medicaid expansion, Baucus says
Sep 16, 2009
The financing of a Medicaid expansion that will be part of the Senate Finance Committee’s healthcare reform proposal should please state officials. That is according to Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT),...
Cutting Medicare to nursing homes is poor healthcare policy
By
Alan G. Rosenbloom
Sep 15, 2009
Congress is considering healthcare reform legislation that proposes deep cuts to Medicare spending for nursing home care. Such a bill would not be the way to achieve meaningful reform.
Database of disciplined nurses still off-limits to nursing homes and hospitals
Sep 04, 2009
The Department of Health and Human Services over the years has kept hidden from nursing homes and hospitals a database of nurses and other healthcare workers who have been disciplined by state licensing...
CMS remains positive about Five-Star rating system despite criticism from attorneys general
Sep 03, 2009
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services responded to a letter from 31 of the nation’s state attorneys general who criticized the nursing home Five-Star Quality Rating System. In a statement,...
As recess winds down, Congress readies for healthcare reform battle
Sep 02, 2009
Congress is preparing to return to Washington D.C. after an eventful August recess. Democrats and Republicans are looking to ramp up efforts at passing, or, in some cases, derailing healthcare reform.
Move to improve residents’ quality of life a welcome development
By
Nancy L. Gorman
Aug 04, 2009
Enhanced standards from The Joint Commission complement new guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Both emphasize improving the quality of life of long-term care residents.
States may suffer in long run with cuts to services for elderly, news accounts suggest
Jul 31, 2009
In an effort to overcome budget deficits for the new fiscal year, many states have reduced Medicaid spending on services for low-income seniors. And that could have negative long-term implications, according...
Nursing home administrators see largest salary gain in recent years
Jul 22, 2009
Despite an economic recession and slower compensation gains for nurses and nurse managers, nursing home administrators’ salaries rose this year at their highest rate in four years.
Use of restraints decreases from 1999 to 2006 in nursing homes, report finds
Jul 01, 2009
The percentage of long-stay nursing home residents with restraints fell from 10.7% 1999 to 6% in 2006. That is from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s 2008 National Healthcare Quality...
Cantwell-Kohl bill would create incentives for states to increase home- and community-based services...
Jun 15, 2009
A newly proposed bill would reform long-term care by offering more Medicaid money to states for home- and community-based healthcare programs.