CMS clarifies provider termination criteria

Continuing care retirement communities continue a stable rating outlook for the end of this year and through 2016, according to a new report by Fitch Ratings.

The “2015 Median Ratios for Nonprofit Continuing Care Retirement Communities” report showed the rating outlook for CCRCs is stable for the third year in a row. Fitch’s investment-grade median ratios also signaled improvement in CCRCs’ core operating performance.

The recovery of the housing market on a whole has been a driving factor for improved CCRC performance, according to the report.

Median capital spending skyrocketed across all of Fitch’s rating categories in 2014, with the investment-grade median reaching 106.6% in 2014 compared to 86.4% in 2013. Capital spending saw the highest jump for CCRCs in the A and BBB rating categories, with the A category going from 107.9% in 2013 to 124.7% last year. BBB rated CCRCs were up to 106.2% in 2014, up from 79.7% in 2013.

Median ratios stayed largely unchanged for CCRCs in the A and BBB ratings categories, although median profitability ratios were marginally better for A rated facilities.