Litigation Breaks on CMS Staffing Mandate

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As anticipated, litigation has started via various sources, in Federal courts, challenging CMS’ SNF “staffing mandate”. For specifics on the mandate and actual text, go here: https://rhislop3.com/2024/04/23/cms-final-snf-staffing-rule/ A big impetus behind the legal challenges to CMS mandate is the recent Supreme Court ruling known as the Chevron decision https://rhislop3.com/2024/07/01/scotus-chevron-decision-a-win-for-healthcare/ The decision overturns a longstanding doctrine … Read more

Touching Base with 2024’s Outlook

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Back in December of 2023 (late), I wrote a post with my 2024 Outlook. I dusted off the “old” crystal ball and peering deeply, I offered a few prognostications.  The post is available here: https://rhislop3.com/2023/12/27/wednesday-feature-outlook-for-2024/ Below are the predictions along with a quick review of how close, or not, I was at the time.  I’ll … Read more

Illinois Assisted Living and COVID Immunity

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Last Friday, the Illinois Supreme Court issued a ruling regarding whether healthcare providers (Assisted Living included) have immunity against negligence claims, COVID and non-COVID related. The decision is available here: James v. Geneva Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, LLC, 2024 IL 130042 The Illinois Supreme Court’s majority opinion stated that healthcare facilities in Illinois, which provided … Read more

Marketing: Value Propositions and Strategy

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On Tuesday, I did a post with regard to senior housing marketing. In the post, I referenced how important it is from a marketing perspective, to develop and communicate, a value proposition as part of a marketing strategy This key theme that I refer to centers around the value proposition or in other words, the … Read more

Senior Housing Marketing and Outlook

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Entering the final quarter of the year, it seems timely to examine the current trends in senior housing occupancies, identify effective marketing strategies, observe rate trends, and consider the outlook for 2025. The senior housing sector is experiencing substantial changes driven by the growing need for specialized senior care services and progress in technology and … Read more

Merger/Affiliation Strategy Update – Checklist

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A recent federal funds rate cut by the Federal Reserve of 50 bps has created a bit of optimism in the M&A and capital development arena for senior living and senior housing. The expectation of more Fed rate cuts going forward undergirds the optimism BUT…Overall economic conditions remain sketchy including inflation which, ticked a notch higher … Read more

Medicare’s Prescription Drug Price Two-Step

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There hasn’t been much open discussion this political season with regard to health policy/healthcare.  What there has been is predominantly centered around abortion, reframed as reproductive healthcare or women’s healthcare.  To a lesser extent, the Harris campaign has touted prescription drug price reductions, including a $2,000 cap on Medicare out-of-pocket drug costs beginning in January … Read more

Federal Judge Key Ruling on False Claims Act

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On September 30, US District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle from the Middle District of Florida ruled in a landmark decision that the qui tam provision of the federal False Claims Act (FCA) is unconstitutional. This ruling could have significant impact on whistleblower (Qui Tam) actions filed against healthcare providers, particularly home health and hospice (most … Read more

Senior Living Liability Claims Analysis Report

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Marsh (largest insurance broker in the world) recently released its 2024 General and Professional Liability Report 2024-General-Professional-Liability-Benchmark-Report-MAR-USA. The report includes data from fifty senior living and long-term care providers comprising 10,300 closed claims with paid indemnity and expense value of $1.87 billion across a ten-year horizon. The ten-year data was used by Marsh to forecast … Read more

Fitch: CCRCs and SNFs Still Staffing Challenged

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According to a recent Fitch Ratings report, employment levels at life plan/continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) and SNFs are still 5.90% lower than before the pandemic. Life Plan Communities Labor Tracker: September 2024 (fitchratings.com) Per Fitch, the causes are many, but the number one challenge is demand for staff which exceeds supply. Overall, options for … Read more