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COVID-19/Coronavirus

Congress may give providers 2-year relief on CMS physician fee cuts
Congress may give providers 2-year relief on CMS physician fee cuts
By
Joe Bush
Dec 01, 2022

Congress appears to be ready to soften proposed Medicare physician pay cuts and might make its aid good for two years instead of one.

Vaccination study finds 9-month, 60 percent protection against omicron reinfection
Vaccination study finds 9-month, 60 percent protection against omicron reinfection
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 01, 2022

A primary vaccination series protected recipients against COVID-19 reinfection across the alpha, delta and omicron variant periods, investigators say.

How providers can protect their residents from COVID this holiday season
How providers can protect their residents from COVID this holiday season
By
Bill Stone
Nov 29, 2022

Let’s take a look at the risk COVID poses this holiday season and how long-term care facilities can protect seniors during this time. 

Payment

New CMS guidance nudges nursing homes to offer COVID shots, timely treatments
New CMS guidance nudges nursing homes to offer COVID shots, timely treatments
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 23, 2022

The agency reminds nursing facilities of the requirement to actively offer updated COVID vaccines and urges them to provide approved treatments early to keep mild symptoms from escalating.

Long-term care expert touts optimism, advice for 2023 after tough year
Long-term care expert touts optimism, advice for 2023 after tough year
By
Joe Bush
Nov 17, 2022

Staffing, reimbursement and regulatory pressures may have given providers a black eye in 2022, but leaders well-versed in regulatory expectations will be ready to rise to new challenges in 2023.

Medicare Advantage plans forcing providers to take ‘optional’ payment reductions
Medicare Advantage plans forcing providers to take ‘optional’ payment reductions
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 15, 2022

Many skilled nursing providers are still underusing Interim Payment Assessments under the nascent Patient Drive Payment Model, but one new pressure is driving some to submit those extra patient evaluations…

Policy

Rattled by uncertainty, Medicaid directors want Congress to give 120 days’ notice on end of PHE
Rattled by uncertainty, Medicaid directors want Congress to give 120 days’ notice on end of PHE
By
Joe Bush
Nov 22, 2022

An association of Medicaid directors wants Congress to give four months’ notice before the end of the public health emergency. It was the main item in a letter to top federal lawmakers last week that…

Focused aging services apprenticeships would ease staffing woes, advocates say
Focused aging services apprenticeships would ease staffing woes, advocates say
By
Joe Bush
Nov 16, 2022

One way to refill the long-term care staffing pipeline is with a robust apprenticeship program that sends students to many of the nation’s nursing homes, officials with nonprofit nursing home advocate…

As bivalent booster uptake lags, health officials urge seniors to get vaccinated
As bivalent booster uptake lags, health officials urge seniors to get vaccinated
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 09, 2022

Despite high uptake in the initial series of COVID-19 vaccines, older adults are not flocking to get the latest COVID-19 bivalent booster shot.

Clinical Updates

Alzheimer’s drug lecanemab has ‘moderate’ effect on cognitive decline, new trial data show
Alzheimer’s drug lecanemab has ‘moderate’ effect on cognitive decline, new trial data show
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 01, 2022

The experimental Alzheimer’s drug slowed decline in memory and thinking by 27% when compared with placebo, although 20% of patients reported adverse events. 

Study pinpoints mortality risk after major surgery for frail seniors with dementia
Study pinpoints mortality risk after major surgery for frail seniors with dementia
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 29, 2022

Among frail seniors who had major surgery, 28% died in the following year. Mortality was even higher in those with dementia. The results may aid clinicians in counseling patients and their families about…

Workforce Issues

With DONs in hot demand, providers act to broaden pipelines
With DONs in hot demand, providers act to broaden pipelines
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 28, 2022

Faced with unprecedented competition for registered nurses, skilled nursing providers are pulling out all the stops to recruit, up-train and retain what is arguably the most important clinical worker in…

$513,000 judgment continues DOL onslaught against nursing homes violating wage rules
$513,000 judgment continues DOL onslaught against nursing homes violating wage rules
By
Joe Bush
Nov 28, 2022

A “common and costly” error by two Pennsylvania nursing homes can be averted by other providers, said a Department of Labor investigator in the wake of a more than half-million-dollar judgment against…

Five-Star shifts have added pressure to staffing urgency — it’s time for a new approach
Five-Star shifts have added pressure to staffing urgency — it’s time for a new approach
By
Kevin Maufer
Nov 15, 2022

Skilled nursing facilities were among the hardest hit during the COVID-19 pandemic by nurse staffing shortages, impacting patient care and staff satisfaction.  As skilled nursing facilities work to…