BREAKING: CMS proposes 3.7 percent nursing homes pay boost; no details on staffing minimum

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Tuesday proposed a 3.7% pay hike for nursing homes but declined to issue a staffing minimum as part of its annual payment rule proposal. The agency said it “remains committed” to doing so “later this spring.”

The agency had said it would propose the minimum staffing mandate as part of its Skilled Nursing Facility Prospective Payment System for fiscal year 2024 in a rule-making calendar published in the Federal Register.

“CMS continues to review the feedback and evidence from both the comment solicitation and mixed-methods study, all of which will be used to inform proposals for minimum direct care staffing requirements in nursing homes in rulemaking this spring,” the agency said Tuesday.

CMS did propose additional quality reporting and value-based purchasing measures, chief among them a new nursing staff turnover measure billed as “part of the Administration’s focus to ensure adequate staffing in long-term care settings.”