Senator Grassley has introduced legislation aimed at increasing the transparency of nursing home ownership. This is in response to the Manor Care buy out.

Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act of 2008

Increases Transparency About Nursing Home Ownership and Operations

* Enables the residents and the government to know who actually owns the nursing home

* Strengthens accountability requirements for individual facilities and nursing home chains, including annual independent audits for nursing home chains

* Improves Nursing Home Compare by including a nursing home’s ownership information, the identity of participants in the Special Focus Facility program, a standardized complaint form and links to nursing home inspection reports

* Provides more transparency of a nursing home’s expenditures by requiring more detail in cost reporting

Also, added to the legislation package:

–Instead of imposing civil money penalties (CMPs) up to $10,000, the Secretary would be able to impose a range of penalties of up to $100,000 for a deficiency resulting in death, $3,000-$25,000 for deficiencies at the level of actually harm or immediate jeopardy and not more than $3,000 for other deficiencies.

–The Secretary would be able to reduce CMPs for facilities that do not appeal CMPs and for self-reporting deficiencies below the immediate jeopardy level or the actual harm level if the harm is found to be a “pattern” or “widespread” or those resulting in death.

–Penalties must be collected within 90 days, following a hearing.

* Equips the Secretary with tools to address corporate-level problems in nursing home chains by giving the authority to develop a national independent monitor program specific to multistate and large intrastate nursing home chains

* Provides greater protection to residents of nursing homes that close by requiring advance notice of the closure as well as the development of a transfer and relocation plan of residents

And for staffing:

Improves Staff Training

*Improves staff training to include dementia management and abuse prevention training as part of pre-employment training

* Requires a study on increased training requirements either in content or hours for nurse aides and supervisory staff

This is only a proposed bill.