The nation's first nursing home rating system is an important tool for consumers, but changes can be expected, said the country's highest health official on Tuesday. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said criticism about always assigning certain percentages of facilities "excellent" or "failing" grades is "serious" and deserves further consideration.

Between 1997 and 2007, the number of nursing homes providing training and certification programs for certified nursing assistants (CNAs) fell by more than a third, according to a recent report.

Some states will receive additional funding for insurance information programs for seniors after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services terminated a federal contract with Fox Insurance Company.

The average price per bed for skilled nursing facilities rose slightly in 2009, while the price per bed in assisted living facilities fell, according to the 15th edition of the Senior Care Acquisition Report from Irving Levin Associates Inc.

The healthcare reform package, if passed, will add almost a decade of solvency to the Medicare program, President Obama told seniors Monday during a stop in Ohio.