Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Data Shows CMS Star Ratings Don't Always Correlate With COVID Infections, Deaths
Modern Healthcare: CMS Star Ratings Don't Indicate COVID-19 Cases, Deaths, Data Show
A nursing home's overall CMS star rating does not correlate directly to its COVID-19 caseload or related deaths, according a Modern Healthcare analysis of federal data. CMS on June 1 said that "early analysis shows that facilities with a one-star quality rating were more likely to have large numbers of COVID-19 cases than facilities with a five-star quality rating." However, CMS on June 4 explained that nursing homes with the largest outbreaks were those with lower inspection ratings. (Christ, 6/9)
The Associated Press: Outcry As Some Nursing Homes Try To Grab Stimulus Checks
Compounding the hardships of the coronavirus, some nursing homes have demanded that low-income residents turn over their $1,200 economic stimulus checks, a cash grab lawmakers want to halt. On Tuesday, Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., called on the Health and Human Services inspector general’s office to issue a warning to nursing homes and assisted living facilities that such practices are “improper and unlawful.” (Alonso-Zaldivar, 6/9)
WBUR: Banned From Nursing Homes, Families See Shocking Decline In Their Loved Ones
Family members often are an integral part of the care residents in nursing homes receive. They make sure meals are being eaten, clothes are being changed. They also offer invaluable emotional support. Without it, the consequences can be dire. NPR spoke to several families about what's happened since the mid-March visitor ban. All reported seeing shocking declines in their loved ones. (Jaffe, 6/9)
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Federal Coronavirus Nursing Home Death Data Wrong, Nevada Officials Say
Federal officials erroneously inflated COVID-19 deaths among Nevada nursing home residents, state health officials are contending. (Davidson, 6/9)
