As similar proposals surface in state legislatures and federal minimum staffing standards remain in flux, operators should closely monitor how mandated staffing levels interact with PBJ reporting obligations and Medicaid reimbursement structures.
Trump administration repeal of nursing home staffing rules raises concerns in Connecticut
Connecticut lawmakers and caregivers are speaking out after a New York Times investigation found that the Trump administration’s repeal of federal nursing home staffing rules may have been influenced behind-the-scenes by campaign contributions from industry executives who opposed it.
“In many nursing homes, especially the for-profit nursing homes… There is nowhere near adequate staffing,” said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, standing alongside U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, U.S. Rep. John Larson and a number of caregivers at a Friday press conference. “There is nowhere near the number of care hours that patients need to be well and to recover, but there is nowhere near enough staffing to make sure that workers are protected…in these homes where you don’t have enough workers for the patients, it jeopardizes both the patients and the workers.”
Under federal law, nursing homes have historically been required to have a registered nurse on-site for at least 8 hours a day and to maintain sufficient staffing to meet residents’ needs, but no minimum staffing levels have been established.
— CT Insider, February 6, 2026
Costs likely to thwart state’s effort to pass tougher nursing home staffing mandate
Lawmakers want to increase minimum nursing home staffing hours from 3 hours per resident per day to 3.6 hours by July 1, 2026. While such a mandate could cost a projected $24 million, the actual cost to the state to staff at that level, the bill said, “will depend on the number and level of staff required and how such costs are incorporated into Medicaid payments to nursing homes — with a state share of costs at approximately 50%.” … Recent studies have linked agency nurse use to higher costs, lower quality ratings in the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services Five-Star system and an increase in pressure injury risk.
— McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, April 30, 2025
State owes nursing homes $55M for unintended RN staffing requirements
“Because the now former DPH rule had the force and effect of law from March 2024 to January 2024, many nursing homes increased staffing to comply with the rule and incurred increased costs. During this period of time, nursing homes received enforcement violations and had to implement corrective action plans to comply with the rule that has now been withdrawn.”
— McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, February 28, 2024
State’s Minimum Staffing Law Cost $55M While in Place for Just 10 Months
The state owes its nursing homes $55 million for staffing requirements imposed between March 2023 and this past January when an enhanced version of the directive was discontinued, according to the state Department of Social Services Commissioner Andrea Barton Reeves. … Still, even if CMS confirms it will administer federal aid to the state, Connecticut is on the hook for at least $27.5 million, that is if CMS covers half of the cost.
— Skilled Nursing News, February 27, 2024
