The U.S. Supreme Court will not overturn two state court rulings allowing descendants of nursing home residents to bring wrongful death lawsuits against providers. Both cases involve arbitration agreements.
The U.S. Supreme Court may again weigh in on arbitration agreements in nursing homes. Nursing home company SSC Odin Operating Co. recently filed a writ of certiorari asking the nation's highest court to resolve a question on the matter.
February 11, 2013
The late Hunter S. Thompson famously said that when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. By his logic, the management and workers involved in a strike across five HealthBridge Management facilities in Connecticut seem to be taking professionalism to a whole new level.
January 25, 2013
Most states are making the Medicaid application process easier as they prepare for implementation of the Affordable Care Act, according to a recently released study from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured and the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families.
January 02, 2013
A federal trial court has declined to grant an injunction in a case over the Affordable Care Act's "contraceptive mandate," finding against companies that said the requirement goes against their religious beliefs.
December 03, 2012
The Supreme Court last week heard oral arguments on the unpleasant subject of workplace harassment. At issue is whether an employer is responsible when the bully is not strictly a boss. The court's ruling will be closely watched by nursing homes, where the line between bosses and subordinates often can be blurry. A decision that creates new liabilities could unleash a menagerie of workplace flowchart headaches.
Despite state-by-state variation, Medicaid spending is expecting to increase by billions of dollars through 2022, according to a study from the Kaiser Commission of Medicaid and the Uninsured.
November 12, 2012
As late as Friday, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) indicated he still would like to upend Obamacare. But he really needs to find a less frustrating way to spend his working hours.
October 03, 2012
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling on health care reform brings to mind Apollo 13 astronaut John Swigert's understated line: "Houston, we have a problem."
Legal experts say the Affordable Care Act's maintenance-of-effort (MOE) requirement — which prohibits states from tightening Medicaid eligibility — remains vulnerable to legal challenges.
Regulators are likely to give states flexibility when it comes to the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion, a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services official suggested Monday.
July 25, 2012
It's really true: There are lies, damn lies and ... Congressional Budget Office estimates.
July 25, 2012
It's really true: There are lies, damn lies and ... Congressional Budget Office estimates.
Long-term care stakeholders will learn during a special webcast Tuesday why they should care about the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the healthcare reform law. Starting at 2 p.m. (Eastern Time), attendees will learn what will happen to provider payment cuts and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services programs, as well as the case-mix index and the Dual Coordination Office. Alan K. Parver, Esq., Shareholder at Polsinelli Shughart will delve into the ramifications for the long-term care sector. Cynthia Morton, the executive vice president for event sponsor the National Association for the Support of Long Term Care, will moderate.
The Congressional Budget Office is still assessing the impact of the Supreme Court's Affordable Care Act decision on the federal deficit and won't have an estimate until the end of July. That figure, when it's calculated, could either help or hurt Congressional Republicans' efforts to repeal the law.
July 09, 2012
The Supreme Court has served up yet another tortured, enigmatic decision. Now comes the fun part: figuring out what they really intended — and what those intentions will likely mean for long-term care operators.
July 06, 2012
What a stress-filled week for Our Nation's President. The Supreme Court finally ruled on his signature accomplishment—the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — and pandemonium instantly ensued.
July 05, 2012
The governors of 15 Republican-leaning states have signaled that they will not participate in the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion, a new analysis finds.
June 29, 2012
In rejecting a take-it-or-leave it Medicaid expansion provision, the Supreme Court gave states more control over their destinies. And it would appear that long-term care operators may similarly benefit.
June 28, 2012
While the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act, it struck a provision that said states would lose their Medicaid funding if they don't comply with the planned expansion.The ruling means progressive action on maximizing Medicaid reimbursement is still needed, a top long-term care advocate told McKnight's.
June 28, 2012
In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court rejected Medicaid expansion provisions in the new healthcare law. However, the court ruled that an individual mandate to purchase health insurance is constitutional. The vote was 5-4 in favor of the Affordable Care Act.
June 26, 2012
Even if the Supreme Court repeals the Affordable Care Act, its early reforms have already delivered promising benefits, according to former Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Donald Berwick, M.D.
June 25, 2012
Three Affordable Care Act initiatives often touted as coordinating care and improving outcomes for elderly adults could actually make their circumstances worse, a new study suggests.
Unions must allow nonmembers to object to unexpected fee increases or special assessments all workers are required to pay in closed-shops, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
If the Supreme Court invalidates the Affordable Care Act, long-term care facilities could be among the biggest casualties, a report published in advance of the decision states.
June 20, 2012
I wonder what the bookies in London are thinking about the odds of the U.S. healthcare reform law surviving. Surely they have taken bets on its possible demise, just as they do seemingly everything else with a questionable outcome.
June 15, 2012
The Supreme Court has decided that corporations and unions are really no different from regular folk when it comes to sponsoring elections. As a result, we're about to see a spending spree that would shame King Louis XVI.
Consumer healthcare spending is expected to grow at a relatively modest rate between now and 2014, due largely to the struggling economy, a federal report predicts.
Conservative healthcare analysts warned a House committee that several provisions of the Affordable Care Act could cause further industry consolidation and weaken Medicare.
April 25, 2012
Healthcare experts on both sides of the political spectrum are warning that the Medicare program could unravel if the Supreme Court deems the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. Nursing homes, and others might not get paid, at least one expert says.
