PBJ News Topic

Minimum Staffing Roundup

State Attorneys General ask CMS for staffing rule on for-profit SNFs

February 1, 2026

Our Take: Following CMS’s repeal of a federal staffing mandate, attorneys general from 18 states are urging the agency to adopt a replacement rule applied only to for-profit nursing homes with related-party financial…

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SNF benchmarking report points to value based care, Medicare Advantage, and PBJ scrutiny

January 30, 2026

Our Take: Plante Moran’s 2025 SNF Benchmarking Report analyzes data from over 12,000 skilled nursing facilities. They highlighted trends in Medicare Advantage enrollment, value-based purchasing, I-SNPs, and labor costs that are reshaping reimbursement…

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CMS Special Focus Facility program ‘crack down’ on troubled nursing homes ends use of staffing

January 28, 2026

Our Take: A CMS memo originally added staffing to the Special Focus Facility program but later shifted away from staffing. SNFs in the SFF program face escalating civil monetary penalties beginning at program…

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AHCA: Nursing homes added 40,700 jobs in 2025 as turnover, agency use declined

January 28, 2026

Our Take: AHCA/NCAL’s January 2026 Nursing Home Workforce Report shows that the nursing home sector added 40,700 jobs in 2025, with agency staffing declining 44% and nursing turnover falling nearly 11%. PBJ data…

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Medicaid staffing bonus increases nurse levels

January 26, 2026

Our Take: A study found that an Illinois Medicaid bonus program increased nurse staffing by 12.2% and reduced 90-day hospitalization rates by 0.51 percentage points. The bonus paid up to $38.68 per resident-day…

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Changes in US SNF capacity following the COVID-19 pandemic

January 12, 2026

Our Take: A JAMA study using 2018–2024 PBJ data found that U.S. SNF operating capacity declined 5% between 2019 and 2024, twice the rate reflected in licensed bed counts alone. Staffing shortages were…

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A look at nursing facility characteristics in 2025

December 17, 2025

Our Take: KFF’s 2025 data analysis reports that nursing facility deficiencies rose 40% over the past decade as staffing hours per resident declined. 27% of SNFs are now cited for serious deficiencies for…

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CMS repeals minimum staffing mandate after legal challenges, lobbying

December 2, 2025

Our Take: The Biden-era federal minimum staffing mandate for nursing homes was officially repealed by HHS in December 2025, following a sequence of federal court losses and new Administration declining to continue legal…

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PBJ data driving increased scrutiny of nursing home staffing

November 1, 2025

Our Take: A growing ecosystem of tools and research are used by external stakeholders to evaluate nursing home staffing. Some recent uses include a new publicly available PBJ dashboard, updated U.S. News nursing…

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Iowa court vacates nursing hours per resident day requirements

August 27, 2025

Our Take: Federal courts in Iowa vacated the Biden-era nursing home staffing mandate’s most costly provisions that required 24/7 RN coverage and a minimum hours-per-resident-day of nurses. The court found that CMS exceeded…

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PBJ News Topics

Read about PBJ regulations, research & news impacting SNFs

Most Recent PBJ News

NJ SNF sues CMS over PBJ audits, citing no appeal rights

April 22, 2026

Latest PBJ News

Our Take: A New Jersey skilled nursing facility filed a federal lawsuit on April 21, 2026, alleging that…

SNF pay rate proposals bring heightened CMS enforcement

April 10, 2026

PBJ Policy & Enforcement

Our Take: CMS has proposed a 2.4% Medicare rate increase for SNFs in FY 2027 while simultaneously expanding…

Minnesota SNF wage floor implementation delayed as CMS review restarts and provider associations file federal lawsuit

April 9, 2026

Latest PBJ News

Our Take: Minnesota’s Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board was created in 2023 to set binding wage floors and…

New York minimum staffing mandate journeys through workforce shortages, enforcement, and legal challenges

April 8, 2026

Latest PBJ News

Our Take: New York’s 3.5-hour minimum staffing requirement has progressed from contested legislation to active penalty assessment. State…

Democratic bills revive minimum staffing debate

March 30, 2026

Minimum Staffing Roundup

Our Take: CMS repealed the nursing home minimum staffing rule in early 2026 following court defeats. Key provisions…

CMS nursing home funding campaign grows to $200 million

March 16, 2026

Minimum Staffing Roundup

Our Take: CMS has expanded its nursing home staffing campaign from $75 million to $200 million. Proposed with…

PBJ technical specifications changed

March 16, 2026

PBJ Policy & Enforcement

Our Take: CMS made minor updates to the PBJ data specification for uploaded PBJ files. Users can no…

The effects of labor unions on nurse staffing ratios

March 2, 2026

PBJ Research & Analysis

Our Take: A Health Affairs study of 321 newly unionized nursing homes from 2013 to 2021 found that…

Did state staffing mandates add direct care staff or hurt SNF finances?

March 2, 2026

PBJ Research & Analysis

Our Take: A study of 6,849 nursing homes in 22 states found that state minimum staffing mandates raised…

Medical Director compliance under increasing federal and state scrutiny

February 23, 2026

Latest PBJ News

Our Take: Federal regulators and state lawmakers are intensifying scrutiny of SNF medical directors. OIG is actively reviewing…

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