Seniors in seven states soon will need prior authorization for powerchairs under Medicare. The homecare industry voices its disappointment in the lack of physician documentation standards for authorization. Read More »
The recovery in assisted living occupancy remains in place, as occupancy continues to improve, reports NIC MAP. Inventory growth also accelerated, growing by 0.6 percent in the second quarter, which is its highest pace since first quarter 2010. Read More »
When operational changes occur, it is critical to review and update your community’s emergency plans to help ensure that the changes have been incorporated into these essential documents. Read More »
Having conducted and participated in hundreds of facility tours during my career, I have been able to distill the tour process into its most important stages. These stages comprise the welcome, discovery, tour, presenting financials/commitment and exit. Read More »
Home healthcare agencies are the focus of $5 million in suspect Medicare claims, according to this week's report from the Office of Inspector General. Read More »
What promotes brain health? Religion surely does, in ways direct and indirect, subtle and mysterious; religion alters brain activity among the elderly, it affects emotions and changes behavior. Early scientific research findings inspire awe, raise spiritual questions and offer practical advice. Read More »
A massive study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine shows significantly higher risks of heart attacks during the two to six weeks following total joint replacement surgeries. Read More »
The unfortunate overlap of multiple payment-reduction laws and regulations could add up to $65 billion less for skilled nursing home budgets over the next 10 years, according to nationwide data released today. Read More »
What is a LTC provider to do when contracted service providers fail to follow through with certain responsibilities, resulting in denial of Medicare/Medicaid payments and civil penalties? LTC provider Daniel Farley shares the approach used by his organization to be proactive in resolving potential problems in advance. Read More »
Read about the regions and job titles that pay nursing home employees the most in the annual nursing home payscale survey, released this week. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is finally set to begin a three-year project to reduce fraud and errors by using RACs to check Medicare claims before they move to the payment stage. Read More »
The principals at three: living architecture maintain that one can incorporate hospitality design features at any phase of a senior living community’s life—from early planning through current status to future expansions. Their critical takeaway: One can never afford a dull community. Read More »
Staff overload could cost your facility plenty, as one research center draws a direct relationship between burnout and healthcare-associated infections. Read More »
With increased government oversight and efforts to find inappropriately paid Medicare funds, facility staff may end a Medicare stay prematurely for fear of being audited and having their claim denied. What is the key to balancing provision of skilled care and avoiding auditor take-backs? Read More »
As states debate whether to adopt Medicaid expansion or not, the latest public health study from Harvard suggests expansion might be a healthy idea. Read More »
CMS will increase prospective payment system pay rates to skilled nursing facilities by almost 2 percent, based on its yearly rate adjustment report. Read More »
The Department of Health & Human Services has released the LTC chapter in the national plan to reduce infections: C. difficile and urinary tract infections are the first of many high-priority targets. Read More »
A low-premium, high-deductible health plan used to be viewed as "the single consumer's plan." Now, high-deductible plans are a favorite of employers, especially for large-group coverage. Read More »
Many changes are ahead for employers concerning employee health insurance benefits. Some of the rules will begin as early as this fall. Nancy Taylor, co-chair, Health & FDA Business Practice at global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLC, discusses the key strategies employers should consider in preparing for compliance. Read More »
A new training course from AHRQ can give caregivers fresh insights into the signs that a resident's condition is changing, alerting staff to monitor the resident more closely. Read More »
At Long-Term Living’s 2012 Environments for Aging conference in Orlando, two college sophomores were presented with first prize in the third annual AIAS/SAGE Student Design Competition, a program that challenged architecture students to push the envelope in housing designed for the elderly. Read More »
LTC providers are investing more heavily in short-term rehab as a way to recoup shrinking Medicare reimbursements while taking on higher-acuity cases in order to keep residents out of the hospital. Meanwhile, they are giving wellness amenities and programs higher priority as families evaluate facilities with a more discerning eye. Read More »
Many of our LTC residents are eating meals while sitting in their wheelchairs. How much do we "institutionalize" our residents by passively convincing them that sitting in the wheelchair in the dining room "is easier for everyone"? Time after time, we realize that our processes and philosophies have to be revisited and reiterated constantly. Read More »
A somber day in Kansas City, Mo.: A wandering senior is found dead and an entire nursing home is evacuated at two senior living facilities. Read More »
The new version of CMS' Nursing Home Compare website now includes data on readmission rates, nursing home inspections and antipsychotic drug use. Read More »
It was a large group of states with GOP governors whose challenge of the ACA led to the Supreme Court’s ruling, and many of them have either decided, or reportedly may decide, to forgo the additional federal payments that would come from expanding Medicaid eligibility in their states. Read More »
