Articles and Blogs

The Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced that it will begin to deliver nearly $4.9 billion from the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Provider Relief Fund (sometimes referred to as the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund) on May 22, 2020 to skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”). Purpose? HHS intends for SNFs to... READ MORE

States like Indiana, Connecticut and Maine are offering to pay nursing homes a higher per diem for COVID-19 presumptive residents or a higher percentage reimbursement rate if a nursing home qualifies as a “COVID-19 ready” facility, as discussed in our recent article here. As nursing homes assess, plan for and take actions to qualify... READ MORE

Nursing homes face possible fines and the need to navigate F-Tags as they embark on the new COVID-19 reporting requirements to the CDC. On May 6, 2020, the Quality, Safety & Oversight Group at CMS issued a memorandum entitled “Interim Final Rule Updating Requirements for Notification of Confirmed and Suspected COVID-19 Cases Among Residents... READ MORE

On April 30, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released 279 pages of interim final regulations to add a new provision at 42 CFR 483.80(g)(1), to require facilities to electronically report to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) information about COVID-19 in a standardized format specified by CMS. What... READ MORE

Visitation, residents leaving and returning, telephone surveys, hospitalized patients being discharged to a nursing home and other issues have been challenging for skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”) and nursing facilities (“NFs”) (in this alert, SNFs and NFs are collectively Long‑Term Care Facilities “LTC Facilities”) as they navigate the evolving government guidance. On April 24, 2020,... READ MORE

The reporting and disclosure of COVID-19 positive cases have been a hot button issue for nursing homes (“NHs”). On April 19, 2020, the Quality, Safety & Oversight Group at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued a memorandum entitled “Upcoming Requirements for Notification of Confirmed COVID-19 (or COVID‑19 Persons under Investigation) Among Residents... READ MORE

April 16, 2020 is National Healthcare Decisions Day. The goal of the day is to encourage Americans to think and talk about their health care goals and communicate their health care decisions by executing advance health care directives. Studies indicate that most Americans have not executed documents that name a health care decisionmaker or... READ MORE

The transfers and discharges of COVID-19 positive and COVID-19 negative residents are challenging for skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”) and/or nursing facilities (“NFs”), (in this alert, SNFs and NFs are collectively Long‑Term Care Facilities “LTC Facilities”) as they navigate the evolving government guidance and delicate communication and public relations areas. On April 13, 2020, the... READ MORE

On April 9, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued its third version of a memorandum entitled “COVID-19 Emergency Declaration Blanket Waivers for Health Care Providers” (“Blanket Waiver Memo”) that announced additional blanket waivers for providers, including skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”). The Blanket Waiver Memo adds several physician services waivers for... READ MORE

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) recently issued new recommendations to state and local governments and skilled nursing facilities (“facility”) to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Two states also recently announced they will pay facilities a premium to identify as COVID-only facilities.... READ MORE