Providers press CMS on COVID-19 vaccination for surveyors
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 16, 2021
Updated nursing home COVID-19 visitation guidance issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services was widely welcomed by long-term care providers Monday, but stakeholders are still seeking more...
CMS edicts bring tougher survey conditions to nursing homes
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 15, 2021
More oversight is coming for nursing home providers after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services directed surveyors to take a more critical look at nurse competency and residents’ quality of care...
Providers still can’t limit surveyor access or ask for proof of COVID vaccination, CMS says
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 15, 2021
Long-term care facilities are not allowed to restrict access to surveyors based on their vaccination status or ask them for proof of vaccination as a condition of entry, according to updated guidance from...
BREAKING: CMS increases oversight of nursing home survey process and expands nursing home visitation...
By
Kimberly Marselas
Danielle Brown
Nov 12, 2021
Nursing homes should allow visitation for residents “at all times,” while state surveyors received steps on how to address a backlog of complaint and recertification surveys under two separate memos...
Not so fast: 10 states suing CMS over healthcare worker vax mandate
By
James M. Berklan
Nov 12, 2021
Despite many legal analysts’ view that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ healthcare worker vaccination mandate will clear legal muster, a group of 10 states have filed suit to stop it.
3 key strategies help boost nursing home staff vax rates, study of 400+ facilities finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 12, 2021
Leading LTC geriatricians have teased out the top strategies used by facilities with staff COVID-19 vaccination rates of 75% and higher.
What long-term care operators are doing to comply with federal vaccination rule by first deadline
By
Danielle Brown
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 11, 2021
It’s all hands on deck as long-term care operators quickly develop implementation plans to comply with the new federal COVID-19 vaccination rule for workers with the first deadline just over three weeks...
Few Medicare recipients enroll in cardiac rehab, despite expanded benefits
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 11, 2021
Cardiac rehab participation rose among Medicare recipients with heart failure after coverage expansion in 2014, but the numbers remain abysmally low at less than 10%, a new study has found.
COVID vaccine mandate will survive legal challenges, experts believe
By
Kimberly Marselas
Danielle Brown
Nov 10, 2021
The Biden administration is confident that legal challenges to its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers will ultimately fail, and legal experts are largely in agreement. As a result, they are...
COVID-19 vaccine mandate for surveyors? CMS clarifies
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 09, 2021
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans on issuing COVID-19 vaccination guidance covering surveyors charged with inspecting nursing homes, an agency spokesperson confirmed.