ME LTC workers see expected pay increases as minimum wages increase across country
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Jan 04, 2022
Direct care workers in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in Maine are expected to see wage increases to at least 125% of the state’s minimum wage after Gov. Janet Mills (D) announced last...
Nursing home advocates ask CMS to amend visitation guidelines as COVID-19 spikes
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 22, 2021
With the rapid spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus and a spike in COVID-19 infections overall nationwide, nursing home advocates are asking the federal government to allow providers more discretion...
Silver lining of Build Back Better bill collapse: opportunities for improvements, providers say
By
Kimberly Bonvissuto
Dec 21, 2021
With Democrats’ plans to vote on the $2 trillion Build Back Better social spending bill derailed by a surprise “no vote” announcement from Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), the senior living and care industry...
Court says OSHA can enforce vaccinate-or-test mandate for large companies; opponents appeal to Supreme...
By
Lois A. Bowers
Dec 20, 2021
The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration can enforce its COVID-19 vaccinate-or-test mandate for employers with 100 or more workers, at least for now, after a three-judge...
Biden administration asks Supreme Court for stay from injunctions against CMS vaccine mandate
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 20, 2021
As lawsuits mount from multiple states, the Biden administration asked the Supreme Court Thursday to reinstate nationwide the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ emergency regulation mandating...
Nursing facilities, CCRCs account for $196.8 billion in spending in 2020: report
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 17, 2021
Nursing facilities and continuing care retirement communities accounted for $196.8 billion in spending in 2020, driven by COVID-19, according to an Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & and...
Massachusetts AG will appeal court decision to dismiss landmark COVID case alleging nursing home neglect
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 16, 2021
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey filed a notice of appeal Tuesday in Hampden County Superior Court seeking to overturn a lower court’s dismissal of criminal charges lodged against two leaders...
Injunction blocking CMS COVID vaccine mandate applies only to 14 states, appeals court says
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 16, 2021
After a federal judge issued a nationwide injunction last week barring enforcement of a vaccine mandate for Medicare- and Medicaid-funded healthcare facilities, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New...
After months of increases, SNF occupancy slowed in September: NIC report
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 10, 2021
Reversing a seven-month trends, skilled nursing occupancy declined to 75.1% between August and September. That amounted to a 27 basis points downturn, according to the latest Skilled Nursing Monthly...
Iowa SNF faces $685,000 in fines for regulatory violations, is placed on CMS Special-Focus Facility List
By
Kathleen Steele Gaivin
Dec 07, 2021
A nursing facility in Iowa has amassed more than a half a million dollars in fines, and has been added to the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Special-Focus Facility List.