For lots of good reasons, a long-term care facility hallway should not be the same as a hiking trail. Protruding rocks and exposed tree roots would create a fall hazard, and make med cart navigation...
Mom-and-pop survival
By
Jean Wendland Porter
May 31, 2022
The chain and franchise SNFs will mostly survive. But in the face of rising costs, federal cuts and vast numbers of employees leaving the workforce, how can the small operators survive?
Which matters most: Social media or Five-Star?
By
Steven Littlehale
May 27, 2022
Recently my colleague Ken Kelley, MS, OTR/L, RAC-CT, a clinical consultant/reimbursement specialist, posited something about Five-Star ratings that I hadn’t considered. He suggested that, in general,...
PEPPER Report: Target areas for rehab
By
Renee Kinder
May 26, 2022
It’s been a little over a month since the Q4FY21 release of the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns Electronic Report (PEPPER). Have you downloaded your reports yet?...
Notable nursing home case headed to SCOTUS
By
Norris Cunningham
Angela Rinehart
May 23, 2022
Talevski v. Health and Hospital Corporation, et al., has potentially far-reaching implications and could significantly increase the number of claims against nursing homes and the cost of such claims.
The killer hiding on the porch
By
Gary Tetz
May 19, 2022
I’m not easily surprised these days, because…everything. But I just stumbled across an astonishing bit of data.
Parting thoughts, and a pricey problem
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
May 17, 2022
While I haven’t run out of material, I’m tapping out my last column because I don’t want to run out of time. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from sitting by the bedsides of elders in the...
Therapists, take note! Proposed changes to ICD-10 mapping
By
Renee Kinder
May 12, 2022
The buzz around the proposed rule for fiscal 2023 continues as providers aim to review, digest and comment on proposed updates to the SNF payment rates, wage index adjustments, methodology for recalibrating...
The fate of telehealth funding once PHE is gone
By
Liz Westbrook
May 09, 2022
Despite a spate of high-profile cases among the “DC elite” in recent weeks, the federal government seems eager to turn the page on COVID-19. Anthony Fauci, M.D. recently announced that we are...
Every breath you take
By
Gary Tetz
May 05, 2022
As pandemic testing becomes more sophisticated, a creepy song from the ’80s takes on new and ominous relevance. “Every breath you take I’ll be watching you,” warned The Police, and now that an...