Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating on the development of a free on-line training course in infection prevention and control for nursing home staff in the long-term care setting.   This announcement was…… Continue reading Specialized Infection Prevention and Control Training for LTC Staff – Spring 2019

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® MedPAC (Medicare Payment Advisor Commission), in its March 2018 report to Congress, recommends “no payment update in 2019 for four FFS payment systems (long-term care hospital, hospice, ambulatory surgical center, and skilled nursing facility) and reductions of 5 percent of the base payment for the…… Continue reading MedPAC Recommends Cut for SNF Medicare Rates

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare CMS relayed a reminder of today’s SNF/LTC Open Door Forum this morning.  Today’s posting now includes an additional announcement/update – Clarification on RCS-1 Status.  This topic is a welcome addition as all providers are anxious to hear more specifics, particularly regarding implementation, of this proposed…… Continue reading Today’s CMS Skilled/LTC Open Door Forum – RCS-1 Agenda Item Added

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® The last SNF/LTC Open Door Forum was held back on November 2, 2017. We’ve been waiting for the next ODF!! Here’s the information that CMS posted on February 28, 2018: The next CMS Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF)/Long Term Care (LTC) Open Door Forum scheduled for:…… Continue reading CMS Schedules Next SNF/LTC Open Door Forum

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® CMS is hosting a National Training Program on Wednesday, March 8, 2018 from 1pm to 2:30pm (Eastern Time) to provide an overview of the new Medicare card educational resources. Register for this webinar here. The new Medicare cards will be mailed out to all Medicare…… Continue reading New Medicare Card Educational Resources Webinar

By Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP, Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® This week, CDC’s (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Office of Antibiotic Stewardship announced an “interactive web-based activity (with) the first of four sections designed to help clinicians optimize antibiotic use to combat antibiotic resistance and improve healthcare quality and patient safety. This course…… Continue reading CDC Training on Antibiotic Stewardship

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® A national call is scheduled for March 20, 2018 from 1:30pm to 3pm (Eastern time) to: Gain insight on the Phase 2 changes for person-centered care planning and discharge planning and Learn about the new Alzheimer’s Association Dementia Care Practice Recommendations. CMS will share updates…… Continue reading Person-Centered Care Planning and Practice Recommendations Call Dementia Care in Nursing Homes

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare® CMS posted an updated FAQ document on February 6, 2018. The 25-page document identifies January 26, 2018 as the date. “This Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) document contains questions and answers about Long Term Care (LTC) regulations, the survey process, technical questions, and other related LTC…… Continue reading CMS Updates LTC Regulations, Survey Process and Training FAQ Document