As home health and hospice care spending comes under increased scrutiny from the government, providers must make sure their compliance plans evolve to meet federal requirements and their own needs. Read More »
Adverse events related to post-acute care are harming residents and costing the government money, according to a new report from the Office of Inspector General, so skilled nursing facilities must find a way to reduce their incidence. Read More »
The country’s largest assisted living company is being investigated by the federal government for allegations of improper Medicaid billing and other matters, according to an investigative journalism outlet. Read More »
New regulations in the Bay State govern worker training, activities, public communication and design of nursing home units for residents with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. Read More »
Members of Maine’s legislature are considering the recommendations of its Long-Term Care Facilities Study Commission as the state grapples with how to pay for the care of its aging population. Read More »
The backlog of cases appealing audit decisions and payment denials has cause CMS to make a radical move: Hit the pause button on the audit program until contractors can catch up. Read More »
An expert in hypertension, congestive heart failure and gene therapy for vascular disease has been named the next president of the advisory body the Institute of Medicine. Read More »
Deficiencies and enforcement actions don't always have to be accepted without a challenge. Long-Term Living's legal expert, Alan Horowitz, explains the steps to appealing state survey deficiency reports. Read More »
The Older Americans Act should be reauthorized with a focus on maintaining program flexibility and addressing demographic changes, according to policy and aging experts who testified during a recent government hearing on the matter. Read More »
In Step 2 of our series on achieving Quality Assurance Performance Improvement, Nell Griffin, LPN, EdM, explains the importance of team building and teamwork. Read More »
A recent report highlights the success of a federal program to transition Medicaid recipients from long-term care facilities to home- and community-based settings, including reinstitutionalization rates and residential preferences of senior participants. Read More »
A bipartisan team of lawmakers has struck a deal to repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) and set new guaranteed pay increase for physicians that provide services under Medicare. Read More »
A new federal rule will allow senior care residents and their family designees direct access to lab test results, encouraging consumer care involvement. Read More »
A two-year project will examine cognitive health and aging in an effort to improve training for healthcare professionals and educate older adults, their families, caregivers and others. Read More »
Data, data, everywhere... How can LTC providers leverage resident monitoring data and facility information to make better patient care and business decisions? Read More »
The Joint Commission has released an updated guide for nursing, rehabilitation, home health and other care providers seeking accreditation or certification this year. Read More »
Four components should be part of every senior care provider's emergency preparedness plan, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Found out what the agency is proposing and how you can comment. Read More »
The Health and Human Services' Office of Civil Rights gets a stern dressing down from the OIG for failure to provide proper oversight on HIPAA security issues. Read More »
Certain factors relate to resident quality of life, but the government rating of the facility where they live is not one of them, according to new research. Read More »
Nowhere in a facility is entirely free of safety hazards. Finding and fixing the potential areas of risk is key to an effective and compliant safety program. Read More »
Does your skilled nursing facility care for residents with mental heath conditions? Medicare recovery audit contractors for mental illness issues may threaten access to care. Read More »
Congress may be ready to do away with the sustainable growth rate (SGR), re-fix the “doc fix” and ditch therapy caps, but will skilled nursing become the scapegoat for the costs? Read More »
The recommendations made by the federal Commission on Long-Term Care related to long-term services and supports for seniors and disabled individuals are the focus of a Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing. Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services and its oversight body, the Office of Inspector General, released reports this week identifying strategic goals for the next few years. Read More »
