Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP
Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare
This article is a very interesting read. It was posted by the Kaiser Family Foundation on Friday, July 14, 2023 – same title as this blog. I encourage you to review and share it with your team and colleagues.
“This data note explores the current state of nurse staffing levels at nursing facilities in anticipation of the forthcoming proposed rule on staffing regulations. Specifically, we analyze the percentage and characteristics of facilities that would meet higher levels of nursing staff, if required under Medicare and Medicaid. The analysis includes data from 14,575 nursing facilities (97% of all facilities, serving 1.17 million or 98% of all residents) that reported staffing levels in June 2023. Staffing levels and requirements are often specified as direct care hours per resident day (HPRD), which equals the total number of hours worked by each type of nursing staff (nurse aides, registered nurses, and licensed practical nurses) divided by the total number of residents. Key takeaways include:
- Nearly all facilities would meet a requirement of 2.5 or fewer HPRD and 85% of facilities would meet a requirement of 3.0 HPRD, but close to half (45%) of all nursing facilities would not meet a 3.5 HPRD requirements, and only 29% would meet an HPRD of 4.0.
- Similarly, when looked at as a share of residents, 83% of residents live in a facility with staffing levels of at least 3.0 HPRD, but 50% of residents live in a facility that meet a 3.5 HRPD and only 23% live in a facility with staffing levels of 4.0 or greater.
- At any required staffing level above 2.5 HPRD, a lower percentage of for-profit nursing facilities would meet the requirement than non-profit or government nursing facilities.
- There is wide state variation in the share of facilities that would meet required HPRD levels of 3.0 or higher: At a level of 4 HPRD, the share of facilities meeting the requirement would range from 12% in Texas to 100% in Alaska.”
The above graphs speak loudly but you need to review the entire article. It speaks to:
- What are Current Staffing Requirements for Nursing Facilities?
- What Share of Nursing Facilities Meet Varying Levels of Staffing Requirements That Could Be Included in the Forthcoming Proposed Rule?
- What Happens to Nursing Facilities When They Do Not Meet Required Staffing Levels?
- What are Key Issues to Watch?
Be sure to take a look at the two (2) Appendix Tables at the end of the article.
- Share of Residents Living In Nursing Facilities Meeting Various Staffing Levels
- Range of Staffing Levels Among Nursing Facilities in June 2023
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