Closure of historic nursing home reflects sector’s increasing infrastructure problems
By
Kimberly Marselas
May 20, 2024
An unsuccessful, years-long bid to find a partner willing to finance needed capital improvements or help redevelop a historic nonprofit nursing home in South Boston will lead to its closure this summer.
Nursing homes could get doubled incentive pay due to new performance metrics
By
Josh Henreckson
May 02, 2024
Nursing homes in New Jersey will have new opportunities for increased care quality incentive payments if a measure in the proposed state budget for fiscal year 2025 is approved. The proposal would nearly...
Senate bill counts hospital ‘observation’ days toward time needed for skilled nursing coverage
By
Kimberly Marselas
Apr 25, 2024
A Senate bill introduced Wednesday would count days spent under ‘observation status’ in a hospital toward Medicare’s three-day qualifying stay requirement.
Nursing homes weigh pros, cons of new weight loss drugs as limited Medicare coverage kicks in
By
Kimberly Marselas
Apr 22, 2024
A recent decision by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to cover popular new weight loss drugs that provide additional health benefits could be a “game changer” for potentially thousands...
Medicare audits ‘ramping up’ with isolation coding in the crosshairs
By
Josh Henreckson
Apr 22, 2024
Auditors are paying special attention to isolation and quarantine coding amid already heightened Medicare nursing home audits that are expected to increase in coming months, experts warn.
Bake sale-supported nursing home now pursues ‘fairer’ memory care swaps for survival
By
Josh Henreckson
Apr 05, 2024
A Rhode Island nursing home that had turned to a grassroots funding campaign that included a resident-run bake sale to avoid closure has announced a new plan to stabilize finances and remain open.
Not much to be thankful for?
By
John O'Connor
Nov 19, 2023
It’s easy to take what we have here for granted. This is a land of unmatched freedom and opportunity. Not that it’s always crimson and clover. For example, consider what skilled care providers are...
Ask the payment expert … about payment reductions
By
Eleisha Wilkes, RN, RAC-CTA, RAC-CT, DNS-CT
Oct 10, 2023
Q: How do I know what determines my 2% annual payment reduction? I’ve received a non-compliance letter citing MDS reporting requirements, but it doesn’t provide details.
Skilled nursing care’s cloudy Medicare future
By
Brendan Williams
Aug 18, 2023
A net gain of $1.4 billion for a sector comprised of over 15,000 nursing homes somewhat pales in comparison to a looming CMS staffing mandate estimated to cost nursing homes $11.3 billion a year.
Insurgence of leveled contracts
By
Susie Mix
Jul 14, 2023
By now, we’re all pretty familiar with the fact that managed care is altering the post-acute care payor mix with Medicare Advantage plans. This is a byproduct of national policy, intended to offset our...