Providers and their lobbyists hailed moves in mid-February that they hope will bring an end to aide-training lockouts.
Lawmakers introduced a bipartisan bill that would modify punishment for nursing homes assessed civil monetary penalties above $10,000 on their annual survey. Since 1987, that level of CMP also was met with a certified nurse training lockout for two years, typically a crippling blow for a facility already in trouble.
Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI) reintroduced the bill Feb. 14. His first introduction of it came in October, but this time he was joined by Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN), adding across-the-aisle support. Rep. Greg Gianforte (R-MT), a member of the House Committee on Energy & Commerce, is also sponsoring the bill.
Providers have tried to get the training lockout provision abolished for years.
“It’s important to note that healthcare legislation really hasn’t been moving unless it’s bipartisan,” Niles Godes, senior VP of congressional affairs for LeadingAge, told McKnight’s. “And now we have bipartisan support and we have it right at the beginning of the new Congress. That’s a big deal.”
Under the proposal, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services would impose lockouts based on substandard quality of care. Part of the problem, SNF advocates say, is suspension of CNA training is required, even if the fines are not related to quality. In addition, training can’t be reinstated before the end of the two-year lockout, regardless of whether the issues raised by the citation have been fixed.
LeadingAge and the American Health Care Association both applauded the move in a rare joint statement. They urged others in the House to join in “co-sponsoring this important legislation.”
From the March 1, 2019 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
