Ground-level falls lead to high rates of SNF admission, return trips to the hospital, study finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 12, 2014
Even if they do not hit the ground from a great height, elderly people who seek hospital care for a fall commonly go on to a skilled nursing facility, according to a recently published study. These seniors...
CMS clarifies rules regarding vaccines, respite care for hospice patients
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 11, 2014
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has loosened regulatory language regarding which providers can furnish vaccines to hospice patients, and has tightened enforcement of a five-day payment limit...
Remembering Philip Seymour Hoffman, long-term care firebrand
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 11, 2014
When Philip Seymour Hoffman died on Feb. 2, the world lost one of its great actors — and one of the most persuasive voices to speak out about the pitfalls of the changing long-term care system in the...
Long-term care providers, physicians at loggerheads over pace of doctor payment reform
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 11, 2014
Long-term care and physician groups may be headed for an impasse when it comes to fixing Medicare’s system for paying doctors.
Gun threats at nursing home get resident’s husband 41-month prison sentence
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 06, 2014
An Oregon man faces 41 months in prison after threatening to shoot nursing home workers, the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced Tuesday.
Assisted living residents cannot sue under nursing home law in New Jersey, federal court rules
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 05, 2014
A state law to protect nursing home residents cannot be invoked to bring a suit against an assisted living provider, a federal judge recently ruled, reversing his earlier decision.
Telemedicine reduces nursing homes’ hospital readmissions if staff engagement is high, researchers...
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 04, 2014
Skilled nursing facilities that implement a telemedicine service and teach staff to use it could reduce their hospital readmissions, but current payment systems do not encourage this, according to a forthcoming...
CMS clarifies reporting requirements for hospice providers operating in skilled nursing facilities
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 04, 2014
New revisions to the Medicare Claims Processing manual are intended to clarify requirements for hospice providers operating in skilled nursing facilities, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced...
ACA objection by provider earns temporary injunction
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 01, 2014
A Catholic long-term care provider and the federal government opposed each other in recent Supreme Court filings over the Affordable Care Act’s so-called “contraception mandate.”
CMS wants tougher emergency prep rules
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 01, 2014
Long-term care facilities would have to meet more comprehensive emergency preparedness guidelines if a newly proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is enacted.