Each week we will highlight three trending news articles shared from the long-term care industry. From nursing homes to skilled nursing facilities, this weekly post will catch you up to speed on what's new.

CMS wallops nursing homes with planned staffing requirements and increased penalties

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the agency will now establish minimum staffing requirements to crack down on nursing homes that may be unsafe. This was announced on Monday, February 28. 

CMS plans to look into the level and type of staffing needed to ensure safe, quality care for residents. 

These new measures are part of initiatives to better the care and processes that facilities adhere to. 

President Joe Biden also plans to call on Congress to increase CMS’s budget by almost $500 million, a statement released by the administration said. 

CMS will also be launching an effort to identify problematic diagnoses in an effort to refocus time and effort to decrease the use of inappropriate antipsychotic medicatons. 

The agency cited a Government Accountability Office report that uncovered, from 2013 to 2017, 82% of all investigated nursing homes had an infection prevention and control deficiency, including a lack 
of simple hand washing, all of which were identified through Medicare and Medicaid surveys. 

Harsher measures and guidelines will be focused toward consistently poor performing facilities.  

To ensure your facility adheres to these measures, and future ones, learn about our comprehensive infectious disease management platform for long-term care providers: https://www.base10genetics.com/covid-19-medical-facilities?hsLang=en  

Reference article >

CDC revises public indoor mask guidance; no changes yet for healthcare settings

Using local hospital capacity and number of COVID-19 cases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is revising its indoor mask guidance. 

The CDC’s recommendation is for everyone to wear masks inside, where risk is high. In low-risk counties, however, people can take a break from mask wearing.  

CMS advises clinical care providers to use county transmission rates to make infection-control decisions. 

Reference article >

SNFs See Largest Health Care Wage Increases Yet Employment Levels Lag Behind

Although skilled nursing facilities are seeing the largest wage increase over the past two years, employment levels continue to decrease exponentially.  

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, who analyzed this research, found that the largest employee declines were most severe in areas with high COVID-19 rates. 

The study, led by Thuy Nguyen, PhD, research assistant professor at the University of Michigan’s School of Public Health, found that skilled nursing’s average weekly wage increase skyrocketed in the final quarter of 2020, at about 115% from 2019’s average. 

When concluding the study, researchers stated, “Our results imply that intensified early efforts are needed to protect the health care workforce in future pandemics.” 

Reference article >

Thank you for reading this week's edition of Weekly Long-Term Care News and Updates, from BASE10. We hope you enjoyed learning about the industry's latest news and findings. To be notified for next week's post, please subscribe to our email newsletter down below.

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About BASE10 Genetics, Inc.
Located in Chicago, BASE10 is a healthcare software technology company whose platform creates turnkey disease management programs that can be deployed at scale for nursing home operators, pharmacies, payors, and self-funded employers.