Almost half of Medicare beneficiaries aged at least 65 years, among them nursing home residents, reported trouble or the need for assistance with activities of daily living in a recent study. Read More »
After months of a pause mode due to backlogs in the appeals process, CMS has reinstated the recovery audit contractor (RAC) review process. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is delaying launch of its dialysis center ratings, but a kidney disease-related coalition says it still has concerns. Read More »
Long-term care facilities will be able to collect controlled substances turned in by residents, under a new Drug Enforcement Administration regulation meant to combat prescription drug abuse and misuse. Read More »
The final chapter in the series “12 Steps to QAPI” shows how preparation, organization, data and action can correct and improve processes to enhance the quality of care your residents receive. Read More »
Do you know what nursing facilities' obligations are when it comes to reporting and investigating claims of abuse or neglect? The Office of Inspector General has new recommendations to help ensure that you do. Read More »
What’s for dinner? Are you planning and serving residents meals that are in line with the new dining standards? A new toolkit helps to implement these requirements. Read More »
It’s nearing that time of the year again when it's important to review your residents’ history of vaccinations and to schedule the various inoculations, including pneumonia, that will protect them from infections in the coming months. Read More »
Lawmakers push the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to ease long-term care (LTC) red tape for military vets to obtain healthcare services. But what are the prospects for accessibility to LTC services? Read More »
Making use of newer guidance and data from the government, as well as improving communication with other entities and perfecting a person-centered approach to care, should be priorities for clinical and operational leaders in long-term care, according to the executive director of an educational foundation and consultancy. Read More »
A Kentucky registry will enable long-term care employers to view a list of people who have records of substantiated maltreatment of adults who were in their care. Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved an inhalation spray, olodaterol, to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Read More »
New federal guidance outlines the responsibilities and actions a facility needs to take when it suspects a resident is a victim of a financial crime. Read More »
QAPI expert Nell Griffin, LPN, EdM, offers valuable resources and advice on establishing performance improvement projects to remedy problems in care practices. Read More »
Current Medicare requirements challenge home healthcare, but a new initiative is identifying infrastructure, workforce, research, technology and policy needs to facilitate change. Read More »
Legal scholars and human rights advocates have released a proposal that aims to legally protect older adults under international human rights law. Read More »
The U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services have announced an Elder Justice Roadmap "for tackling the highest priority challenges to elder abuse prevention and prosecution." Read More »
Identifying problem areas, establishing goals, selecting committees and accessing data to enhance quality are components that determine whether a facility should charter a performance improvement committee. Read More »
Payments to home health agencies would decrease by 0.3 percent in fiscal year 2015 under changes to the Medicare prospective payment system proposed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. CMS will accept comments on the proposal until Sept. 2. Read More »
Fifteen skilled nursing facilities or nursing facilities have joined the latest Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services list of poor survey performers. Read More »
Long-term acute care hospitals, freestanding inpatient rehabilitation facilities, hospices, partial hospitalization programs and some skilled nursing facilities can now access their Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns Electronic Reports electronically. Read More »
The Long-Term and Post-Acute Care Health IT Collaborative is putting the final touches on its 2014-2016 Roadmap for technology adoption in the long-term/post-acute industry this week, and it's about a lot more than electronic medical records. Read More »
