The New Wave of Foodservice Technology in Senior Care

Healthcare reform

LTPAC information technology conference melds care quality & business impact

June's LTPAC HIT Summit will mark the annual long-term and post-acute care meeting of the minds of technology and longitudinal care coordination. Read More »

Leaders of Tomorrow: Phenelle Segal, RN, CIC

Congratulations to the fourth of our five 2013 Leaders of Tomorrow: Phenelle Segal, RN, CIC. After 30 years in acute care, Segal has dedicated herself to educating LTC facilities about infection control and prevention. Read More »

CMS sweetens the deal for fraud whistleblowers

Know about someone conducting sneaky Medicare billing practices? CMS’ new whistleblower proposal might pay you more than your boss does. Read More »

Senate committee approves Tavenner for CMS helm

Marilyn Tavenner has obtained a vote of confidence from a Senate committee in her bid to become the first confirmed administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in seven years. Read More »

The pros and cons of per capita caps for Medicaid

Federal agencies and lawmakers keep revising one possible way to curb Medicaid spending growth: Per capita caps. Read More »

Leaders of Tomorrow: Roberto Muñiz

Congratulations to another of our five 2013 Leaders of Tomorrow award winners:  Roberto Muñiz, MPA, LNHA, FACHCA, president and CEO, the Francis E. Parker Memorial Home, Piscataway, N.J. Parker incorporates value-added services for adult day healthcare and social outreach to seniors in the community. Read More »

Our 2013 Leaders of Tomorrow awards

We're proud to introduce the five winners of Long-Term Living's Leaders of Tomorrow awards program, chosen for their determination, their creativity and their vital contributions to the long-term care industry. Read More »

SNFs soon may face penalties for avoidable readmissions

Next year, in an effort to improve quality of care, skilled nursing facilities may share the penalties already levied to hospitals for 30-day Medicare hospital readmissions. Read More »

Obama budget will cut Medicare but boost Medicaid and mental health

President Obama's new budget, released by the White House Wednesday, includes plenty of cuts, but also contains a few surprising increases. Read More »

Obama proposes $7.6 billion increase in vets’ LTC benefits

President Obama has proposed a $152.7 billion budget to expand access to healthcare, eliminate disability claim backlogs and end homelessness for veterans.  Read More »

Technology reaches further into long-term and post-acute care policy

Health information technology and long-term care, once rarely found in the same conversation, are now topics of discussion within multiple policy-making bodies and workgroups. Read More »

One-on-one with…. Ruta Kadonoff

Senior Editor Pamela Tabar talks with Ruta Kadonoff, vice president of quality and regulatory affairs for the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), about quality in long-term care—and why being able to measure it will be important for business. Read More »

2% Medicare payment reductions begin today

The waiting is over. No resolution to the budget crisis means that sequestration begins—today. Long-term care facilities will feel the effects upfront, but a quieter casuality might be healthcare's information technology and data-sharing initiatives. Read More »

Fla insurance shutdown hits 100,000 Medicare/Medicaid beneficiaries

Florida’s Universal Health Care Insurance suddenly closed its doors last week, giving beneficiaries three days to choose another insurance provider. Read More »

HHS finalizes rule on funding payment rates for new Medicaid beneficiaries

The federal government last Friday announced a final rule that provides 100 percent payment of the cost of certain newly eligible adult Medicaid beneficiaries. Read More »

CMS dashboard to simplify best practices for chronic disease

The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released a new analytics tool to help providers understand multiple chronic conditions in seniors. Read More »

White House, Congress might consider combining Medicare Parts A and B

Sweeping changes may be on the horizon for the way Medicare billing is divided, as President Obama and Republicans put the idea of combining Medicare Parts A and B back on the discussion table, the New York Times reports today. Read More »

CMMI, Senate committee lock horns over innovation projects

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) got a tongue-lashing from the Senate Finance Committee, while CMMI’s director explains that testing new models takes time before payment reforms can be put into action. Read More »

LTC industry applauds legislation to roll back therapy caps

Legislation that would roll back caps on therapy services to seniors in skilled nursing centers has been introduced in both the House and Senate and is being applauded by an industry reeling from one payment reduction after another. Read More »

Antibiotics: LTC’s double-edged sword

The days of antibiotics being a "silver bullet" are long over, especially in nursing homes. And when it comes to antibiotic medication, more isn't necessarily better. The challenge of treating bacterial infections without inadvertently creating new resistant bacterial strains has LTC facilities stuck between a rock and a hard place. Read More »

MedPAC to Congress: Reduce SNF payments by 4% in 2014

Skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies face payment reductions, but hospices and long-term care hospitals get a first-round bye in MedPAC's latest Medicare payment recommendations to Congress. Read More »

Final 3 members appointed to LTC commission

President Obama adds the last three names to the Long Term Care Commission, completing the group's bipartisan membership. Read More »

Texas SNF survey: Funding cuts portend staff layoffs, deferred tech investment, facility closures

A new survey of Texas nursing homes finds the series of state and federal funding cuts to seniors’ skilled nursing facility care is creating a dangerous strain on facilities’ ability to care for growing numbers of older, more medically complex residents. Read More »

SNF surveys: Do they tell the whole story?

Nursing home consumers—residents and their families—say the survey process has flaws that need to be addressed, according to a new report from the Coalition for Quality Care. Read More »

CMS: Penalties are working to reduce hospital readmissions

New data on hospital readmission shows that healthcare reform is making an impact--changing the rates for the first time in five years, says CMS. Read More »

Proactive strategies to reduce hospital readmissions

Skilled nursing providers (SNFs) are all too familiar with the challenge of preventing hospital readmissions for residents. In a recent Long-Term Living webinar that addressed this very issue, Maria Arellano, MS, RN, Clinical Product Manager, American HealthTech, reviewed the scope of the challenge and offered proactive strategies for providers to consider in their continuing quest to reduce hospital readmissions. Read More »

OIG: Nursing homes provide ‘criminally poor care,’ fail on care plans

A new report from the Office of Inspector General accuses skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) of misusing their Medicare payments, since more than one-third of SNFs don’t fulfill—or even create—the care plans and discharge goals required for their residents. Read More »

N.J.’s Gov. Christie joins GOPs reconsidering Medicaid expansion

N.J.’s Gov. Chris Christie is the latest republican governor to change his mind about expanding the state Medicaid program. Read More »

C. Everett Koop dies at 96

Widely recognized by his bushy beard and somber uniform, former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop became a household name for his anti-smoking campaign. Read More »

LTC group praises bill addressing hospital observation stays

The Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care (AQNHC) on Monday praised the introduction of New York Senator Chuck Schumer's (D-NY) bill, the Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act, which changes Medicare law to permit nursing home residents access to skilled nursing care after hospital “observation stays.” Read More »