Latest California Healthline Stories
1,400 Nursing Homes Get Lower Medicare Ratings Because Of Staffing Concerns
Medicare said those homes either lacked a registered nurse for “a high number of days” over three months, provided data the government couldn’t verify or didn’t supply their payroll data at all.
‘Like A Ghost Town’: Erratic Nursing Home Staffing Revealed Through New Records
Daily nursing home payroll records just released by the federal government show the number of nurses and aides dips far below average on some days and consistently plummets on weekends. A new California law increases minimum staffing standards at nursing homes, but critics say it doesn’t go far enough.
Look-Up: How Nursing Home Staffing Fluctuates In California
Use this tool to see staffing levels at skilled nursing homes in California.
Medicare Takes Aim At Boomerang Hospitalizations Of Nursing Home Patients
Nationally, one in five Medicare patients who leave the hospital for a nursing home end up back in the hospital. In California, one-fifth of the more than 1,200 nursing homes send at least 24 percent of their Medicare patients back to the hospital. To discourage this trend, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will soon give bonuses and penalties to facilities based on their rehospitalization rates.
Voces oficiales aseguran que esta supervisión deficiente hizo que el número de incidentes que podrían causar lesiones graves o la muerte haya aumentado significativamente en los últimos años.
Inadequate Oversight Allows Poor Care At California Nursing Homes To Go Unchecked, State Audit Finds
The scathing report cites a significant increase in cases of poor care — especially ones with the potential to cause serious injuries or death. A state lawmaker called the findings “very, very disturbing.”
User-Friendly Or Error-Ridden? Debate Swirls Around Website Comparing Nursing Homes
State says its new site is easier to navigate, though it remains a work in progress. Advocates for nursing home patients call it “a huge step in the wrong direction” that could endanger people’s lives.
State Pay Cut For Dental Hygienists Who Serve The Poor Was Illegal, Court Finds
California officials should have obtained federal approval before they cut reimbursement rates for dental hygienists who serve frail Californians living in nursing homes and board-and-care facilities, a judge has ruled.
Care Suffers As More Nursing Homes Feed Money Into Corporate Webs
Increasingly, owners of nursing homes outsource services to companies in which they also have financial interest or control. That allows the nursing homes to claim to be in the red while owners reap hidden profits.
Trump Administration Relaxes Financial Penalties Against Nursing Homes
Medicare is discouraging regional offices from levying fines for “one-time mistakes” or from using daily fines that seek to put pressure on nursing homes to make changes.