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...
Movement to cap nurse-agency pay rates advances in another state
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 15, 2021
Lawmakers could introduce legislation as early as this week that would regulate temporary staffing agencies and set maximum pay rates for agency healthcare personnel in Pennsylvania.
‘How good are those vaccines now?’ Mixed AARP nursing home report prompts a thorny question
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 15, 2021
A new AARP report shows encouraging trends in COVID-19 cases and vaccinations. But the steady rate of resident deaths raises concerns for the future as vaccine efficacy wanes, analysts say.
Delirium present in 60 percent of residents’ acute illnesses, but tricky to diagnose: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 15, 2021
Delirium may accompany 60% of the acute illnesses and adverse health events that occur commonly among residents, investigators say. Along with infections, regular use of benzodiazepines was linked to the...
Clinical briefs for Monday, Nov. 15
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 15, 2021
CDC and NIOSH to host panel on healthcare workers’ mental health … WHO preparing to set guidelines for COVID-19 antiviral pills … First patient recruited for Alzheimer’s vaccine trial … Cancer...
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.
Booster shots fighting for attention with vaccine mandates as initial immunity starts to wane
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 12, 2021
Long-term care providers pushing to get holdout staff fully vaccinated against COVID-19 now have an added concern: Convincing already inoculated workers to get booster shots as their immunity from the...
‘Powder keg’ threat: State lawmakers consider staffing support for nursing homes
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 12, 2021
Minnesota state lawmakers are listening after long-term care industry advocates testified this week about the need for more staffing support as providers work to comply with the federal government’s...