Substantial changes are coming for the government's five-star rating program for nursing homes and its controversial criteria basis, according to a recent article in The New York Times.
By 2013, nearly half of all nursing home facilities nationwide received four- or five-star ratings by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. But the current rating system relies so heavily on unverified and incomplete information that even homes with a documented history of quality problems are earning top ratings.
Two of the major criteria used to rate the facilities - staffing levels and quality statistics - are reported by the nursing homes themselves and generally not audited by the federal government.
Beginning in January, nursing homes will have to report their staffing levels quarterly using an electronic system that can be verified with payroll data. And officials will initiate a nationwide auditing program aimed at checking whether the so-called quality measures rating - which is based on information collected about every patient - is accurate.
Nursing homes' ratings will also now be based partly on the percentage of its residents being given antipsychotic drugs. Read the full details here:
Medicare Revises Nursing Home Rating System
The government is finally taking steps to provide more accurate information regarding the quality of nursing homes.
If you or someone you love has been injured due to nursing home abuse or negligence, call the professionals at Crandall & Pera Law for a free case evaluation. Crandall & Pera Law is available to help answer your questions and guide you in determining your next steps.