A government watchdog is urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to keep a more watchful eye on facility-initiated discharges after finding nursing homes rarely complied with federal requirements...
Nursing homes’ infection control oversight still called feds’ No. 1 problem
By
Danielle Brown
Oct 28, 2021
A federal watchdog agency remains hot on its investigation of nursing homes’ compliance with infection control regulations — and how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services oversees their progress.
OIG eyes COVID-19 reporting requirements for nursing homes
By
Danielle Brown
Oct 20, 2021
More scrutiny will soon be placed on the federal government’s COVID-19 reporting requirements for providers and how they’re handled. The Office of Inspector General ratcheted up pressure Tuesday when...
Nursing home death rate soared 32 percent in 2020
By
Danielle Brown
Jun 23, 2021
The coronavirus pandemic’s “devastating impact” on nursing homes led to a 32% spike in overall mortality rate among Medicare residents during 2020, according to a new report by the Office of Inspector...
Clinical briefs for Thursday, June 17
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 17, 2021
Chatbots for dementia still in their infancy, tech researchers find … What to know about new Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm, from scientist who led the trials … Advocacy group urges OIG to investigate...
CMS must refine data on antipsychotic drug use in nursing homes, OIG says
By
Alicia Lasek
May 07, 2021
The Minimum Data Set should not be CMS’ sole source for determining the number of nursing home residents using antipsychotic drugs, according to a new report from HHS’ Office of the Inspector General.
The coming crackdown: COVID-19 and beyond
By
Karen Christian
Matthew Hittle
Apr 21, 2021
For more than a year, America’s nursing homes have been besieged by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has tragically claimed the lives of more than 130,000 residents and 1,600 staff. While America’s nursing...
COVID-19 strategies: WWOT (What would Oprah think?)
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 02, 2021
I have a message for the Department of Health and Human Services: “Boy, do you have a problem.”
Nursing home staffing shortages, infection concerns bottlenecked hospital referrals during COVID-19:...
By
Danielle Brown
Mar 26, 2021
During the height of the pandemic, hospital administrators who wanted to discharge patients to post-acute care facilities often found they were unwilling or unable to accept patients because of concerns...
CMS missing opportunities to enforce staffing rules, watchdog warns
By
Danielle Brown
Mar 12, 2021
A watchdog agency is calling for a greater emphasis on staffing ratios during future nursing home surveys, saying the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is missing opportunities to use information...