Post by M. Hawbaker on Jul 31, 2021 21:24:25 GMT
A federal policy that dramatically limited financial penalties for nursing home violations for the last four years has been reversed, six months after AARP Foundation and a Washington-based law firm filed suit to end the practice.
The policy, instituted by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), had restricted monetary fines for certain nursing home violations to a maximum one-time amount of $22,320 — even if the violation had continued for months. The adoption of such “per-instance” penalties in July 2017 stopped state agencies that monitor nursing homes from recommending per-day fines of up to $22,320, in situations involving past noncompliance, regardless of how long the violation had lasted and how dangerous the violation was.
The reversal comes after the coronavirus pandemic ravaged nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, taking the lives of more than 184,000 residents and staff members. Nearly a third of the more than 600,000 U.S. COVID-19 deaths have been in nursing homes, assisted living facilities and other long-term care settings.
According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, 82 percent of surveyed nursing homes between 2013 and 2017 were cited for infection protocol violations. Before the 2017 policy change, the most serious violations could bring fines of up to $20,965 a day, according to the AARP Foundation, which helps defend vulnerable people over age 50 through legal advocacy.
www.aarp.org/caregiving/health/info-2021/nursing-home-penalties-restored.html
The policy, instituted by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), had restricted monetary fines for certain nursing home violations to a maximum one-time amount of $22,320 — even if the violation had continued for months. The adoption of such “per-instance” penalties in July 2017 stopped state agencies that monitor nursing homes from recommending per-day fines of up to $22,320, in situations involving past noncompliance, regardless of how long the violation had lasted and how dangerous the violation was.
The reversal comes after the coronavirus pandemic ravaged nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, taking the lives of more than 184,000 residents and staff members. Nearly a third of the more than 600,000 U.S. COVID-19 deaths have been in nursing homes, assisted living facilities and other long-term care settings.
According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, 82 percent of surveyed nursing homes between 2013 and 2017 were cited for infection protocol violations. Before the 2017 policy change, the most serious violations could bring fines of up to $20,965 a day, according to the AARP Foundation, which helps defend vulnerable people over age 50 through legal advocacy.
www.aarp.org/caregiving/health/info-2021/nursing-home-penalties-restored.html
