[UPDATED] BREAKING: CMS proposes 4.1 percent nursing homes pay boost; staffing minimum not addressed
By
James M. Berklan
Mar 29, 2024
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Thursday proposed a 4.1% pay increase for nursing homes in fiscal 2025 but declined to issue an update on its staffing minimum proposal as part of its annual...
Federal bill returning temporary nurse aide waiver gets new life
By
Kimberly Marselas
Jan 26, 2023
A bill that would allow non-certified nurse aides to work in nursing homes longer than four months has been reintroduced in the House of Representatives.
Layering of fines amid state, federal staffing rule conflicts tops providers’ worry list
By
Kimberly Marselas
May 02, 2024
Providers in states that have recently increased their own nursing home staffing requirements may soon find themselves playing a complicated penalties and numbers game — and buried in additional paperwork.
Eschewing a ‘sweet spot’ for boutique-like service at any size: Creative Solutions’ Gary Blake
By
Kimberly Marselas
Apr 09, 2024
Gary Blake’s nameplate might say CEO, but in some ways, he envisions himself more as chief quality officer of Creative Solutions for Healthcare, the sprawling 159-facility skilled nursing company he...
Congress advisers back permanent telehealth expansions, look to nix in-person rule for behavioral telehealth...
By
Kimberly Marselas
Apr 12, 2024
Maintaining Medicare beneficiaries’ access to telehealth services, especially for behavioral health, must remain an initial priority over payment reform or quality measurement, members of a congressional...
Drama within deluge of CMS staffing mandate comments
By
Kimberly Marselas
Dec 07, 2023
After 60 days of public and often-heated debate, the formal comment period for one of the most controversial federal healthcare regulations ever proposed came to a close Nov. 6.
With DONs in hot demand, providers act to broaden pipelines
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 28, 2022
Faced with unprecedented competition for registered nurses, skilled nursing providers are pulling out all the stops to recruit, up-train and retain what is arguably the most important clinical worker in...
Nursing facility did not discriminate against fired employee’s religious beliefs, court rules
By
Jessica R. Towhey
Jul 30, 2024
An employee’s refusal to work scheduled shifts and participate in mandatory overtime at a Washington state nursing facility constituted “undue hardship” for her employer, regardless of the employee’s...
CCRC report: Salaries soaring, nurses still hottest but raises moderating
By
James M. Berklan
Jul 11, 2023
Nursing titles enjoyed the highest average annual pay increases — all above 4.1% — among highlighted job classes in the overall 26th annual CCRC Salary & Benefits Report, which was released by the...
Providers tepidly embrace CMS plan to revoke ‘no longer needed’ vax mandate
By
Kimberly Marselas
May 03, 2023
Skilled nursing providers on Tuesday cheered the federal government’s decision to revoke its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.