CMS bulletin presses states on Medicaid nursing home spending

States should use their Medicaid authority to help drive better health outcomes among nursing home residents, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said in an informational bulletin issued Monday.

The agency’s Centers for Medicaid and CHIP Services said states should use already available tools to improve staff pay, training, and retention efforts. The bulletin, while encouraging state governments to do more to fund nursing homes and hold them accountable for quality care, does not impart any new requirements on states or providers.

CMS is urging states to tie Medicaid payments to quality measures that will improve resident care and safety and ensure nursing homes are adequately resourced and staffed. The bulletin directs states “as appropriate, to provide adequate, performance-driven nursing facility rates to ultimately achieve better health care outcomes and address longstanding inequities for Medicaid beneficiaries residing in nursing facilities.”