U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-NE), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Susan Collins (R-ME) on Dec. 5 joined a bipartisan contingent of lawmakers in offering a bill to quash a proposed nursing home staffing rule that could force many rural facilities to close.
“Nursing homes across the country face historic staffing shortages, and nowhere are those challenges more real than in rural states like Nebraska,” Sen. Fischer said.
The Protecting Rural Seniors’ Access to Care Act, S. 3410, which Sen. Fischer sponsored, would prohibit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary from finalizing the proposed rule, entitled ‘‘Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Minimum Staffing Standards for Long-Term Care Facilities and Medicaid Institutional Payment Transparency Reporting,” which HHS published on Sept. 6.
Proposed by HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the rule would mandate new minimum staffing standards for long-term care facilities. And according to CMS, 75 percent of nursing homes would have to increase staffing to comply with the proposed standards, potentially making it tougher for understaffed rural facilities, the lawmakers said.
“This mandate from [CMS] would force many facilities to reduce their number of patients or even close their doors for good,” said Sen. Fischer. “My legislation will stop this staffing rule and allow time to find a fairer solution that protects rural facilities across our state.”
Sen. Wicker agreed, saying the proposed rule may work in one state but not in another.
“Closing our rural-urban healthcare gap will require tailored solutions designed by those who know their communities best — local leaders,” he said. “This legislation empowers them to make decisions they believe are best for their towns while rejecting the Biden administration’s one-size-fits-all approach.”
If enacted, S. 3410 also would also establish an advisory panel on nursing home staffing to submit a report to Congress that would analyze workforce shortages and make recommendations to strengthen the workforce, according to a bill summary provided by Sen. Fischer’s staff.
“Allowing the [CMS] staffing mandate to be forced upon all nursing homes would be a disaster for older Americans who reside in rural areas, as many do in the State of Maine,” added Sen. Collins. “This bipartisan legislation would allow for the chance to negotiate fair rules for all long-term care facilities, helping to avoid wide-scale displacement of residents and closures of rural nursing homes that are facing severe staffing shortages.”
The bipartisan S. 3410, which was cosponsored by U.S. Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), has been endorsed by 98 organizations, including the American Hospital Association, LeadingAge, the Federation of American Hospitals, and numerous state healthcare associations, among others.
The measure is companion legislation to the same-named bill introduced in the U.S. House in September by U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN).