The COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant attention to the healthcare workforce, particularly in nursing homes. As a result, the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have implemented new minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes across the country. They have also set new pay standards for workers in home- and community-based healthcare services funded by federal Medicaid dollars. These changes are aimed at improving patient care and upgrading the services provided by healthcare aides who support patients with various tasks.
The new rules focus on enhancing long-term care for low-income disabled individuals and the elderly. Medicaid will now allocate more healthcare spending to support workers providing crucial services to patients in need. Jennifer Lav, a senior attorney at the National Health Law Program, states that a significant portion of the rates paid by states to providers must now go directly to the workers, rather than administrative overhead.
In addition to staffing requirements, there are new standards for minimum staffing at nursing homes, including requirements for registered nurses, nurse’s aides, and other staff members. According to Robin Rudowitz, vice president and director of the Program on Medicaid and the Uninsured at KFF, a health-policy research group, only one in five nursing facilities currently meet these requirements. Employers will have a grace period to adjust and meet the new staffing levels mandated by CMS.
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