Viewpoint: Consumers need more data on nursing home staffers  

Nursing homes need to provide more data on staffing in order for consumers to make informed decisions when choosing facilities, Forbes senior contributor Howard Gleckman wrote Feb. 3.

CMS said Jan. 26 it will begin posting staff turnover rates and weekend staff levels for nursing homes for the first time on its Care Compare website. Mr. Gleckman noted that while the new data is beneficial, standards for facilities vary by state. 

"The advocacy group Consumer Voice reports that only the District of Columbia requires staffing levels of 4.1 hours per resident day, the minimum level for quality care according to a 2001 CMS report," Mr. Gleckman wrote. "Arizona, by contrast, requires less than one hour of staff time for each resident."

Mr. Gleckman, author of Caring for Our Parents, wrote facilities also need to provide training information, given that many requirements have been waived for nursing home staff in light of the pandemic. 

"Financially strapped nursing facilities are pressuring states to further water down staffing standards," he wrote. "But even under current rules, consumers need the best possible information about nursing home quality and safety. And staffing data are a key piece of that puzzle."

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