COMPLIANCE UPDATES AND TIPS
Richard Kusserow
Former Inspector General
Former Inspector General
Congress Raises Concerns
of Inadequate Patient Protection in Skilled Nursing Facilities
The House of
Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce (the Committee) sent a letter
to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma
requesting that CMS provide documents relating to issues of abuse and neglect
at skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and nursing facilities (NFs) across the
country. The letter specifically referenced recent media reports of significant
abuse and neglect at these facilities, including the incident at Hollywood
Hills Rehabilitation Center in Florida where 14 NF residents died in the
aftermath of Hurricane Irma. Committee members stated that the media reports,
“raise serious questions about the degree to which [CMS] is fulfilling its
responsibility to ensure federal quality of care standards are being met, as
well as its duty to protect vulnerable seniors from elder abuse and harm in
facilities participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.” Related
reports from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) deepened
the Committee’s concerns.
The Committee letter cited an Early OIG Alert from 2017 that identified 134 Medicare beneficiaries receiving treatment at SNFs during calendar years 2015 and 2016 whose injuries may have been...
The Committee letter cited an Early OIG Alert from 2017 that identified 134 Medicare beneficiaries receiving treatment at SNFs during calendar years 2015 and 2016 whose injuries may have been...
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