KAMR-TV Amarillo, Texas
Senators send a letter to CMS aiming to halt unworkable nursing home staffing rule
By Dailyn Wells
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Officials with the office of Senator James Lankford (OK) along with Senator Jon Tester (MT) sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure aiming to get the Biden Administration to rescind their [proposed rule https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/medicare-and-medicaid-programs-minimum-staffing-standards-long-term-care-facilities-and-medicaid] that would set minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes.
According to a press release from the Senator’s office, the senators expressed in the letter that workforce shortages are currently severe in the healthcare field and a federal staffing mandate, could be overly burdensome leading to additional nursing home facility closures, which could hurt seniors adults, their families, and communities where access to care is already scarce.
The Senators wrote, “We understand the importance of ensuring beneficiaries of federal health care programs have access to safe and high-quality nursing care. In fact, we share your intended goal of improving the quality of care for seniors. However, a one-size-fits-all staffing mandate significantly undermines access to care for patients, particularly in rural communities. Instead, CMS should work with Congress and stakeholders on policy alternatives that address the severe workforce challenges in our states’ underserved areas.”
Officials detailed that other senators that joined in sending the letter include Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Jim Risch (R-ID), John Boozman (R-AR), Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Steve Daines (R-MT), Angus King (I-ME), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Lee (R-UT), Marco Rubio (R-FL), John Hoeven (R-ND), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Thom Tillis (R-NC), John Thune (R-SD), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK).