Administration

Patients must be notified of hospital ‘observation status’

The Notice Act, which went into effect Saturday, would requires hospitals to notify patients of their outpatient status to warn them of potential out-of-pocket hospital expenses and impact on possible nursing home stays funded by Medicare. Read More »

Teaching family how to be caregivers

The Oklahoma Healthy Aging Initiative is offering workshops to teach family caregivers how to care of an older adult and communicate with healthcare providers. Read More »

Ruta Kadonoff: Culture change and a side of bacon

Ruta Kadonoff, the newly-appointed executive director of Pioneer Network, opens the organization's 2016 conference by reflecting on what she's learned from past pioneers, and how together, we can change the culture of aging. Read More »

Welltower invests $1.15B in California

The mega-REIT is buying 19 properties, making it the largest senior housing owner in Northern and Southern California. Read More »

Medical marijuana: Hashing out the legal issues

Many states have legalized medical marijuana, but when it comes to Medicare participants, it’s federal law that matters. Read More »

AHCA/NCAL names Vincent Mor, PhD, Champion of Quality

The annual award honors significant contributions to quality improvement in long-term and post-acute care. Read More »

Van Dyk Health Care expands primary care services

The New Jersey-based provider hired its first nurse practitioner to help patients stay healthy and in their own home.  Read More »

Brookdale pares down in $253M sale

The senior living giant is selling 44 properties across 12 states, including almost 600 memory care units. Read More »

5 orgs join forces in chronic care delivery

Five foundations are launching a new collaboration to improve care delivery for those with multiple conditions and a lack of self-care resources, including the elderly. Read More »

OSHA penalties to increase Aug. 1

OSHA, which last adjusted its penalties in 1990, plans to adjust the fines for inflation each year from now on, as per Congressional rule. Read More »

DOJ shuts down $1B Miami nursing home fraud scheme

The largest-ever fraud case involved the owner of more than 30 skilled nursing facilities and two others accused of kickbacks and false billing, the Department of Justice indictment says. Read More »

AHCA/NCAL honors 2016 award winners

The AHCA/NCAL awards recognize those who have given exceptional care and efforts to residents in long-term and post-acute care, assisted living and ID/DD facilities. Read More »

Training, practice and technology pay off in real emergencies

Two real-life incidents show the importance of preparedness and training, so if the worst happens, your staff is ready. Read More »

Ohio Medicaid Qualified Income Trust

Setting up a Qualified Income Trust/Miller Trust to fulfill the Medicaid requirements can be tricky business, so Ohio's Medicaid recipients shouldn't wait to get started on the process, says SNF resident blogger Kathleen Mears. Read More »

Benchmark Senior Living creates new VP of sales and operations

The newly-created executive Vice President of sales and operations position is part of a larger effort to adopt a customer-centered approach to sales. Read More »

Update: Mass. governor slashes proposed nursing home wage increase

Earlier this year, the Legislature approved a $35.5 million increase for nursing home direct care staff wages. Gov. Charlie Baker halved the increase days before the budget was to go into effect.  Read More »

Window-shopping or moving in? Seniors take their time choosing housing

The amount of time older adults spend shopping for senior housing depends on several key factors, including whether or not their family members help them, a new market data report shows. Read More »

Erickson Living hires VP for business strategy and development

Erickson Living, a national developer and manager of continuing care retirement communities, grows its executive team ahead of anticipated facility growth. Read More »

Ethics and professionalism

Integrity and ethical standards can open doors for caregivers and show how professionalism can be a differentiator both in terms of staff and the business. Read More »

House proposes $350M increase for dementia research

The U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee has proposed increasing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia research funding by $350 million for the National Institutes of Health to $1.26 billion.   Read More »

OnShift to offer PBJ software for LeadingAge members

OnShift will offer its payroll-based journal reporting software through an exclusive special discount program to help LeadingAge members meet the government reporting mandate.  Read More »

OSHA launches anti-retaliation rules for injury and illness reporting

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has passed rules that forbid retaliation and discrimination for reporting injuries, including post-accident drug testing and "incentive" programs that retaliate against those who bring workplace safety violations to light. Read More »

MedPAC launches plan for new payment system

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) submits it recommendations to Congress for how to establish a unified, cross-setting post-acute care payment system. The plan would redistribute payments among types of stays, making profits more uniform and hopefully reducing unnecessary services and admission preferences.  Read More »

Challenges to EHR implementation

A new study on implementation of electronic health records (EHR) has identified several obstacles for doctors, chief among them poor user experience. Read More »

The murky LTPAC interoperability landscape

Providers, vendors and techies are gathering at the 2016 Long-Term and Post-Acute Care Health IT Summit in Reston, Va., this week to discuss the challenges to interoperability and the cost felt by patients, providers and payers. Read More »

SCOTUS says no to challenge on labor law for home care

The U.S. Supreme Court has decided not to hear a case that would have challenged the Department of Labor’s ruling on labor protections for home care workers. Read More »