Skilled nursing facility private room rates rose by 3.8 percent compared to last year, reaching a national average of $90,520 per year. But two sectors of long-term care had no cost increases at all, according to the annual survey from MetLife Mature Market. Read More »
While attending the LeadingAge Conference in Denver last month, I had the opportunity to converse with Conrad, a well-spoken 80-year-old who was representing his CCRC board at this conference. What impacted me most about my chat with Conrad was his desire to be connected and to be heard. Read More »
The clarion call to action grows ever louder: In addition to lobbying their local lawmakers, long-term care providers must best position their organizations to serve a rapidly changing healthcare system or face demise. Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services has submitted another rulemaking piece on state health insurance exchanges to the Office of Management and Budget—the last step before publication. Read More »
Long-term care organizations are using an aggressive advertising campaign to tell Congress to end the deep cuts to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements. Read More »
A good percentage of disaster management is “getting your ducks in a row.” Most of this involves establishing appropriate relationships that may be premised on contacts, formalized agreements and memorandums of understanding with vendors of essential services and other facilities that may be needed to provide evacuation and relocation assistance during the disaster recovery phase. Read More »
The votes are in: The Obama Administration now has four more years to further the healthcare initiatives begun under the 2010 Affordable Care Act. So, what happens next? Long-term care leaders, providers and industry experts weigh in on the implications of President Obama's reelection for the U.S. healthcare system and, specifically, the LTC industry. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has granted blanket waivers for New York and New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy, easing the regulations required of long-term care and other health providers. Read More »
How many of your residents have some sort of incontinence? More than you think. Improper assessment and MDS 3.0 coding of incontinence can result in inadequate treatment for residents, costly overuse of incontinence products and payment issues for caregivers. Read More »
A recent study links almost one-quarter of employer/employee health spending to a list of just 10 health risks. What’s the No. 1 health risk? Surprise: It’s not smoking. Read More »
The new employee benefits rules created under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) don’t go into effect until Jan. 1, 2014, but some employers are making changes to their workforce structures already, hoping to avoid the the coverage changes and penalties. Read More »
An emergency response meeting held by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services answers some questions on coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in New York, but many issues remain for long-term and acute care facilities in other states. Read More »
The Savvy Resident’s Guide, a book written by psychologist and Long-Term Living contributing writer Eleanor Feldman Barbera, covers just about every concern a new nursing resident might have, explaining how nursing homes work and how people can make the most of their stays. I encourage LTC providers to consider providing this book to residents and their families upon admission. Read More »
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today declared a public health emergency for New York City. This declaration allows HHS to waive or modify certain Medicare, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program requirements. Read More »
Updated: 5/21/13: Both parties have decided to cancel merger talks for now. The continuum of care gets bigger and broader in Michigan as two health systems join to form one of the largest non-profits in the state. Read More »
One law firm has created a website to educate consumers about nursing home neglect—and to give them easy access to lawyers who specialize in eldercare neglect cases. Will other states follow suit? Read More »
It may be counterintuitive for CCRCs to expand to in-home services, but some in the industry say it is a brilliant move with little to no disadvantages. Learn how an established CCRC made the leap. Read More »
Several nursing homes in the Rockaways area of New York City, which were heavily impacted by Hurricane Sandy, struggled with flooding and damaged generators, according to a report in The New York Times. Read More »
Updated 11:05 p.m. Thousands of LTC facilities evacuate the coastline from Maryland to New York as Hurricane Sandy sets her sights on inland states. Read More »
The danger of complacency and not performing the necessary “due diligence” as it relates to the installation and maintenance of your facility’s generator(s) and emergency power systems can lead to catastrophic failures. Here are five tips to help ensure that your emergency power system performs to its maximum potential at all times. Read More »
I have lived in two nursing homes for over 16 years and at both facilities housekeepers still use dust mops, brooms and string mops to clean. I guess these tools can do an adequate job. But they can make messes and cannot easily clean up something quickly. Read More »
Need new service revenue? Two executives from the Francis E. Parker Memorial Home, Highland Park, N.J., share how offering adult day programs can open up opportunities to provide well-needed services while building new bridges to skilled nursing services. Read More »
A national learning collaborative, launched at this week’s LeadingAge conference, is focused on creating new financial and service strategies for senior living. Read More »
A full moon, high tides and colliding storm systems are conspiring to create a “perfect storm” that will bear down on the East Coast next week. Long-term care facilities should initiate their disaster plans now. Read More »
Those who accrue high healthcare out-of-pocket expenses got an unexpected cost-saver during the recent recession, according to a Health Affairs report. Read More »
Technology projects planned with the input of all departments have the best staff buy-in and training engagement, says a panel of long-term care project managers who have tackled the IT challenges in their own organizations. Avoid “tech trauma” by learning their tips on IT project strategy. Read More »
A facility laundry incurs many expenses--labor, equipment, energy and more--that factor into the costs of operation. Investing in new equipment and attention to detail can pay off. Read More »
The future of aging is in good hands as LeadingAge presented its 2012 awards to outstanding individuals dedicated to serving America’s senior population. Read More »
