Skilled nursing operators can expect healthcare stakeholders to push for more person-centered care programs because of the wide savings they appear to offer payers.

That’s not necessarily a good thing for skilled nursing facility operators. “Person-Centered Care: The Business Case” examined real-world person-centered care systems and revealed that they cut nursing home stays by 20%.

The SCAN Foundation report, which was released on June 20, also showed decreased hospital admissions and readmissions (each by one-third and emergency room visit rates.

The report’s authors noted their assumptions could be “overly optimistic.” But they pointed out that results were still favorable for providers when the calculator was adjusted to simulate a “more conservative scenario.”

“The potential for obtaining a positive ROI from a well-implemented PCC program will of course vary greatly from one organization to another,” the authors acknowledged. 

“Yet in general, for organizations that serve a substantial number of older adults with multiple chronic conditions and functional limitations, and that bear at least some risk for the medical utilization of these people, the business case is strong and the current Medicare payment methods are making it stronger.”