CMS has announced that it will make a series of improvements to the Nursing Home Five Star Quality Rating System, including additional quality measures, new data verification processes, and a revised quality scoring methodology. Among other things:
- CMS will add a new quality measure on antipsychotic medication use starting January 2015, and include claims-based data on re-hospitalization and community discharge rates in the future.
- CMS and states will implement focused survey inspections for a sample of nursing homes to verify staffing and quality measure information, effective January 2015.
- CMS will implement a quarterly electronic reporting system that is auditable back to payrolls to verify staffing information and allow for the calculation of staffing-related quality measures.
- CMS will strengthen requirements to ensure that states maintain a user-friendly website and complete timely, accurate nursing home inspections for inclusion in the rating system.
- CMS will revise the methodology used to calculate each facility's quality measure rating in 2015.
This article is presented for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice.