CMS outlines actions for nursing home outcomes improvements

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this week issued an informational bulletin encouraging states to use existing Medicaid authority to drive better health outcomes for nursing home residents and improve staff pay, training and retention. To ensure nursing homes are adequately resourced and staffed, CMS urges states to tie Medicaid payments to quality measures that will improve the safety and quality of care. The bulletin, which provides examples of state Medicaid initiatives to improve health outcomes in nursing homes, is part of a CMS effort to improve health equity for nurse home residents. (CMS news release, 8/22/22)