Proposed SNF tests would cost more than $400 million, AHCA claims
By
Amy Novotney
May 20, 2020
Testing all of the nation’s skilled nursing residents and staff just once for COVID-19 would cost $440 million, according to data released Wednesday from the American Health Care Association/National...
Study: Pandemic increased the number of homebound, isolated seniors
By
Diane Eastabrook
Aug 25, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic may have led to more older adults living at home and heightened their risk of infection from COVID-19, according to a new JAMA Internal Medicine study.
Senior living employers get a chance to turn the tables
By
John O'Connor
Apr 15, 2020
For years, senior living operators could do little more than watch as food service outlets lured away frontline staff. But as it has done elsewhere, COVID-19 is reversing this reality.
Survey: Most seniors approve of healthcare worker vaccinations
By
Diane Eastabrook
Sep 14, 2021
A newly released poll of seniors suggests most are giving a thumbs-up to the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.
Forbes: The future of nursing homes looks grim
By
Amy Novotney
May 05, 2020
Although some of short-term pandemic-related costs faced by skilled nursing facilities will likely fade over time, the industry’s current overall model may be financially unsustainable without broad...
Morningstar gives ‘negative outlook’ rating to skilled care
By
Amy Novotney
Aug 28, 2020
A leading credit rating company has downgraded its outlook for the skilled care sector, citing legal woes tied to the pandemic.
Feds’ financial incentives left nursing homes vulnerable to outbreaks: analysis
By
Amy Novotney
Dec 01, 2020
The nursing home business has long relied on federal support, mostly though the Medicare and Medicaid systems, but an analysis published Friday in the Washington Post explores how this reliance left many...
Home care providers rally around CDC booster shot decision; CMS to pay for third shot
By
Liza Berger
Sep 27, 2021
Home care providers were pleased after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday signed off on a third Pfizer COVID-19 booster shot for people 65 and older and people at increased risk for...
MedPAC to Congress: Reduce payments to home health in 2022, expand telehealth beyond public health emergency
By
Diane Eastabrook
Mar 17, 2021
In a report to Congress this week, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) offered several key recommendations, including reducing payments for home healthcare agencies in 2022 and extending...
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...