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June 25, 2024

In this Issue:

  1. Consumer Voice Along with Over 270 National and State Organizations Sends Letter to Congress Opposing Efforts to Prevent Implementation of Minimum Staffing Rule
  2. Podcast and Fact Sheet on Addressing Concerns about Retaliation
  3. Updated Agenda for the 2024 Consumer Voice Conference
  4. CMS Has Issued Revised Guidance for Long-Term Care Facility Assessment Requirements

Consumer Voice Along with Over 270 National and State Organizations Sends Letter to Congress Opposing Efforts to Prevent Implementation of Minimum Staffing Rule

On June 20, 2024, Consumer Voice, along with over 270 other national and state organizations, sent a letter to Congressional leaders expressing their opposition to efforts in Congress to prevent the recently issued minimum staffing rule in nursing homes from going into effect. Since the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the final minimum staffing rule the nursing home industry and some in Congress have increased their efforts to block the rule's final implementation. The efforts in Congress, if successful, would not only prevent this rule from being implemented, but would prevent CMS from ever issuing a rule requiring minimum staffing in nursing homes.
 
The fight to protect nursing home residents and to support nursing home workers is far from over. The nursing home industry is using legislative and legal tactics to prevent the rule from being implemented. Send a message to your members of Congress telling them to stand with nursing home residents and workers and oppose efforts to block the rule.

Podcast and Fact Sheet on Addressing Concerns about Retaliation

Retaliation fact sheetRetaliation, and the fear of retaliation, can prevent residents and family members from raising their concerns about care and safety. It also has a chilling effect on the reporting of abuse or neglect in long-term care facilities, leaving many living in fear and without relief from harm. Retaliation can range from very subtle to obvious actions and it may be difficult to determine whether staff are retaliating or if a resident’s needs are not being met for another reason, such as understaffing. Retaliation is never acceptable; it is a violation of the resident's rights.

View the new fact sheet on the topic.

In a new episode of the Pursuing Quality Long-Term Care podcast, join us for a conversation with an Ombudsman, a long-term care resident, and a gerontologist as we discuss how to identify retaliation, action steps to take when it does occur, and how to advocate to prevent retaliation from happening in the future.

Special Guests:

  • Tasha Erskine-Jackson, Regional Ombudsman, Connecticut Aging and Disability Services
  • Jeanette Martinez, Connecticut Long-Term Care Resident
  • Eilon Caspi, Gerontologist and Dementia Behavior Specialist

Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, SoundCloud, Facebook, and website.

Updated Agenda for the 2024 Consumer Voice Conference

The 2024 Consumer Voice Conference will feature a wide range of session topics presented by expert speakers from all over the country.

2024 ConferenceSessions will include:

  • Supporting LGBTQ+ Residents Through Volunteer Engagement
  • Nursing Home Finances
  • State-Level Initiatives to Improve Nursing Home Workforce Standards
  • Ableism in Nursing Homes
  • The Right to Live in the Community is a Civil Right
  • Long-Term Care Services Under Managed Care Plans
  • New Enforcement Approaches to Addressing Resident Harm Caused by Healthcare Fraud
  • Practical Strategies for Managing Behavioral Health Needs of Nursing Home Residents
  • Resident Councils in LTC Facilities
  • Effective Long-Term Care Taskforces
  • Protecting and Enforcing the Legal Rights of Nursing Facility Residents
  • How Elevating and Centering LTC Residents’ Voices Can Transform LTC Advocacy
  • Healthcare Decision-Making for Unrepresented Residents
  • Evaluating Innovation in Nursing Home Systems to End Institutionalization
  • Emerging Advocacy in Medicaid-Funded Assisted Living
  • Person-Directed Living
  • How Nursing Home Advocates Can Work Collaboratively with State Medicaid Oversight Agencies
  • Demystifying the Scary Subpoena and Other Court Encounters for Ombudsman Programs

...and much more!

See the newly updated preliminary agenda now including session titles, descriptions and speakers.This agenda will continue to be updated.

Learn more and register now.

CMS Has Issued Revised Guidance for Long-Term Care Facility Assessment Requirements

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have revised the requirements for Facility Assessment under the “Minimum Staffing Standards for Long-Term Care (LTC) Facilities and Medicaid Institutional Payment Transparency Reporting” final rule. These revised requirements have been moved to 42 CFR 483.71. CMS is issuing revised guidance for State Survey Agencies and long-term care facilities on the revised requirements.

For more information, read the memo from CMS.

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