Complete Story
10/09/2024
LeadingAge Ohio Joins 20 Other State Affiliates in Lawsuit to Overturn CMS Staffing Mandate
For Immediate Release
October 9, 2024
Media Contact:
Molly Homan, LeadingAge Ohio
614-746-9914
LeadingAge Ohio Joins 20 Other State Affiliates in Lawsuit to Overturn CMS Staffing Mandate
COLUMBUS- A total of 21 LeadingAge state affiliates, membership associations that represent hundreds of not-for-profit aging services providers across the country, have joined a lawsuit to overturn the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services’ (CMS) staffing mandate. Led by LeadingAge Iowa, LeadingAge Kansas, and LeadingAge South Carolina, alongside other state affiliates, the suit filed on September 30 in the United States District Court’s Northern District of Iowa, intends to overturn the mandate itself, and to request a preliminary injunction.
In April, CMS released the Nursing Home Minimum Staffing Standards final rule to the Federal Register. The rule requires all federally funded nursing homes to submit a revised facility assessment and changes the minimum number of hours per resident day (HPRD). All non-urban providers must provide 3.48 hours of direct nursing care per patient, per day and staff a registered nurse 24 hours a day. These specific breakdowns also require 0.55 RN and 2.45 certified nurse aide (CNA) coverage per patient, per day.
These newly-prescribed HPRDs mean nursing homes across the U.S. will need an additional 27,000 full-time registered nurses (RNs) and 78,000 full-time nurse aides costing over $7 billion—an impossible requirement to meet amid a worldwide nursing shortage and dismal Medicaid reimbursement rates that do not fully cover the actual cost of care. Sadly, the HPRD limits the utilization of licensed practical nurses (LPNs) who provide most of the direct patient care in nursing homes, potentially displacing thousands of these workers across the U.S.
“LeadingAge Ohio members share the Administration’s commitment to quality in staffing practices. Nonprofit nursing homes invest in staffing at higher levels than their for-profit counterparts, but aspects of the rule remain out of reach for even high-quality providers. In particular, the rule’s focus on registered nurses and lack of attention to licensed practical nurses are mismatched with the reality of our current staffing shortage,” states Susan Wallace, president/CEO of LeadingAge Ohio.
“By focusing regulation so singly on the medical dimension of care—which nurses and nurse aides aptly attend to—this rule may have the unintended effect of drawing resources away from other disciplines like life enrichment, chaplaincy and other services. The Biden Administration’s failure to invest in the long-term care workforce ensures that some providers will make “zero sum” choices between nursing care and other disciplines. We are more than our bodies, and workforce excellence is more than numbers. This rule not only misses the mark on holistic quality care—but it may in fact undercut it,” continues Wallace.
About LeadingAge Ohio
Founded in 1937, LeadingAge Ohio is a nonprofit organization that represents over 400 long-term care organizations and hospices, as well as those providing ancillary health care and housing services, in more than 150 Ohio towns and cities. The continuum of care reflected by the member organizations serve an estimated 400,000 elderly Ohioans daily and employ more than 35,000 persons statewide.
Learn more at leadingageohio.org
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