Skilled Nursing Facility

Routine testing no longer required for vaccinated SNF staff

The federal government announced on April 27th that fully vaccinated staff at SNFs no longer need to complete routine COVID testing. Both vaccinated and unvaccinated staff and residents will still need to be tested if symptoms appear. “Upon identification of a single new case of COVID-19 infection in any staff or residents, all staff and …

Home Health

Home health workers get $358,675 in back wages after being misclassified as independent contractors

A home health care provider in Tennessee recently paid $358,675 in back wages to resolve overtime violations, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Labor on April 20. Fifty workers at Servant’s Quest in Oliver Springs, Tenn., had reportedly been misclassified as independent contractors by the company, according to DOL. The employer …

Featured Event

Home Health Coding Summit

Coming together, coding together. Join us as we focused on coding accuracy (including COVID-19 codes), the importance of coding in PDGM, a look at new codes and guidance updates, strategies for professional development, process improvement around timely billing and gathering documentation and more.

Post-Acute Advisor Podcast

Be Prepared for Upcoming Surveys

Long-term care Reta Underwood joins us today to prepare SNFs for upcoming surveys.

Private Duty

Q&A: Revoking authorization for disclosure

Q: If an individual provides authorization for a disclosure, can the individual later revoke the authorization? Is the covered entity (CE) then required to “take back” or demand the erasure of any documentation by third parties that may have been made following the original authorization? A: Individuals have the right to revoke their authorizations in …

PPS Alert for Long-Term Care

Avoiding lawsuits in your SNF

SNFs have long been vulnerable to lawsuits, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the risk. Despite certain immunities put in place during the pandemic, SNFs are still at risk of civil suits brought by residents, families, and even staff and vendors, due in large part to the fact that nursing home residents account for approximately 40% of COVID-19 deaths in the United States, explains Todd Selby, attorney at Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman.