Are the new Justice Department Elder Justice Task Forces a smokescreen to cut costs? Long-Term Living's politics and policy reporter, Robert Gatty, examines the forces at play in the new initiatives. Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services has implemented regulations to protect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community on the basis of gender identity and sex stereotyping in healthcare and insurance under the Affordable Care Act. Read More »
The Department of Justice is cracking down on South Dakota, accusing the state of putting people with disabilities in nursing homes unecessarily rather than providing community-based services. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services adds six new quality measures to the Nursing Home Compare system, including data on short-stay residents' trips to the emergency room. Read More »
With the new CMS reporting requirements looming, skilled nursing facilities are gearing up for the mandatory Payroll-Based Journal data transactions for direct-care workers. Read More »
Hospice may see a 2 percent increase in reimbursements in 2017, but new reporting requirements could go into effect as well, according to a new CMS proposal. Read More »
The largest private insurer in the country has announced it will be ending its participation in most state healthcare marketplace exchanges, but it has some new plans for the future. Read More »
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released the final rule that gives protection to employees who serve as whistleblowers on food safety violations. Read More »
Texas has one of the highest turnover rates for nursing home employees. The facilities are having trouble staying competitive with Wendy’s or McDonald’s, which can offer hourly workers a job with better pay and less stress. Read More »
Medicare is trying a new way of calculating the reimbursement for certain drugs, including expensive drugs to treat cancer. After barely a month, the pilot has riled physicians on both sides of the issue. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will test a new payment model that encourages doctors to focus on health outcomes rather than volume of visits or tests. Read More »
The Department of Justice announced the launch of 10 regional interagency task forces designed to protect seniors in nursing homes by holding operators accountable for the quality of care they provide. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has imposed steep fines and threatened to terminate Woodbriar Health Center from its programs if serious problems are not resolved by next week. Read More »
The Center for Innovation has invested more than $30 million for Indiana University’s project to reduce avoidable hospitalizations for nursing home residents by providing higher levels of care on site. Read More »
From 1994 to 2014, the population of California nursing home residents under age 65 increased by nearly 40 percent. So, too, did the number of reported problems directly related to the resident population mix. Read More »
CMS is moving forward with new surveyor tools for facilities that offer dementia care. does your staff know how to document for the new survey? Read More »
The new law will require the state’s Department of Elderly Affairs to sort and prioritize those who are receiving long-term care services and those who are waiting for consideration. Read More »
A U.S. Senate Working Group has outlined priorities for improving Medicare delivery to beneficiaries with multiple, complex chronic illnesses while reducing healthcare expenditures. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services seeks ideas for improving care delivery through a Special Innovation Program and will offer 28 awards totaling $8 million. Statements of Objectives will be available early April. Read More »
The CDC and CMS announced they will celebrate the one-year anniversary of the transition to the new classification system by implementing new diagnosis codes, hospital inpatient procedure codes and revision of existing code titles. Read More »
The Long Term Care Community Coalition reviewed Medicare data to see how effective a federal campaign to reduce inappropriate antipsychotic drugging in nursing homes has been since it was launched fin 2012. There’s still a long way to go, the advocacy group found. Read More »
The American Association of Directors of Nursing Services (AADNS) will offer DNSs in long-term care and post-acute care training, certification and host conferences. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will test a new payment model for nursing facilities and practitioners to further reduce avoidable hospitalizations and lower Medicare and Medicaid spending while improving patient care. Read More »
As OSHA rules become more stringent, senior living organizations are giving more attention to healthy habits to avoid staff back injuries—and not just when lifting a resident. Read More »
All long-term living communities need protocols for managing a wide range of incidents whether the law requires it or not, and residents need to be part of the annual practice drills, says safety expert Stan Szpytek. Read More »
