The nation’s largest nursing home association is pushing back after a major national media outlet criticized the long-term care industry’s lobbying efforts aimed at helping providers survive the public health crisis.
A Sunday report in the New York Times stated accused some of the country’s largest providers — including Genesis HealthCare and Life Care Centers of America — of calling on lobbyists to not only seek assistance to help providers survive during the pandemic, but also capitalize on the pandemic “to pursue a long-sought wish list that, until now, has remained mostly out of reach.”
Some of those efforts include seeking relief funding to help providers struggling with increased expenses and lower revenues and protections against coronavirus-related lawsuits.
“Criticism of health care heroes who are sacrificing their own safety in order to protect others during this global pandemic is not helpful at a time when we need to come together and support one another,” the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living said in a statement to McKnight’s Long-Term Care News Monday.
“This article unfairly and inaccurately targets long-term care providers,” the association added.
AHCA/NCAL added that its focus has been to assure public health officials and policymakers at every level to prioritize long-term care during this pandemic. It also said lobbying efforts are aimed at helping providers receive the guidance and resources they need to keep staff and residents safe from COVID-19.
“The bipartisan advocacy efforts of AHCA/NCAL are all in service to our residents and caregivers on the frontlines — many of whom feel forgotten during this crisis. We need our nation to rally around our nursing homes and assisted living communities, like we have with our hospitals,” AHCA/NCAL stated.
