Final Reminder on the 2019 Quality Award Application Deadline!

The 2019 AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award application deadline is this Thursday, January 31.  Don't miss out on the opportunity to be recognized for your commitment to quality care with this national honor.  The deadline to apply is quickly approaching on January 31, 2019 at 8 p.m. EST!  Log on to the Quality Award portal to submit today. 

Need assistance with the portal?  AHCA/NCAL has you covered.  Register for our webinar on January 29 or January 30, where we'll cover step-by-step how to submit your application and payment.  Sign up here!  For more information on the Quality Award Program, visit www.ahcancal.org/qualityaward or email our staff at qualityaward@ahca.org.   

Importance of Practicing Your Emergency Preparedness Plan

On January 28, 2019, McKnight’s released an article entitled, “‘This could have been a nightmare’ - evacuation plan succeeds during LTC facility’s gas disaster.” According to the article, St. Clare Newport in Rhode Island successfully evacuated all 87 of its residents last week when it lost its heat amid a regional gas outage, during single digit temperatures.  The continuing care retirement community had prepared for such circumstances previously, running drills twice a year.  You can read the full story here.

In addition to planning for natural disasters, staff and facilities must be prepared for other emergencies, such as pandemics, influenza, active shooters and more.  All emergency situations must be handled swiftly, diligently and with the utmost care for staff and patients.  AHCA/NCAL has a dedicated website page with emergency preparedness resources that we believe you will find of assistance.  The page, which can be found here, includes resources by state to information on the CMS Emergency Preparedness Final Rule that was released in 2016.  If you have any questions on the work AHCA/NCAL is doing around emergency preparedness, please contact AHCA’s Erin Prendergast for SNF and AL focuses and AHCA’s Dana Halvorson for ICF/IID related questions.

AHCA/NCAL’s ID/DD Hill Fly-in Event Set for March 6, 2019

AHCA/NCAL’s Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (ID/DD) Residential Services Providers will be in Washington, D.C., for AHCA/NCAL’s annual Hill Fly-In event on Wednesday, March 6, 2019. Participants will hear from Congressional speakers and others.  The event runs from 8 am – 10:15 am ET. 

After the morning event is over, the ID/DD providers will head to Capitol Hill to discuss critical issues, including Medicaid.  If you have any questions relating to this event or would like to attend (it is free to attend, and breakfast and lunch are provided), please don’t hesitate to contact AHCA’s Senior Director of Not for Profit & Constituent Services, Dana Halvorson.  

‘Live Soulfully’ Announced as 2019 Theme for National Skilled Nursing Care Week

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) recently announced “Live Soulfully” as the 2019 theme for National Skilled Nursing Care Week (NSNCW), which will be held May 12-18.  The theme “Live Soulfully” will celebrate skilled nursing centers, and their residents and staff, by showcasing how they achieve happy minds and healthy souls.  Whether it’s planting, cooking, reading or listening to music, these centers pay it forward by helping individuals find happiness to improve quality of life.  Centers will be encouraged to participate by hosting activities that display how they “Live Soulfully” and share their stories and experiences on social media. 

“Each and every person in our profession makes an impact on the lives of our residents,” said AHCA/NCAL President and CEO Mark Parkinson. “National Skilled Nursing Care Week celebrates our centers and caregivers for their tireless everyday work caring for others.”

Established by the American Health Care Association (AHCA) in 1967, NSNCW, formerly known as National Nursing Home Week, recognizes the essential role of skilled nursing care centers in caring for America’s frail, elderly, and disabled.  Skilled nursing care centers and members of the public can download NSNCW promotional materials at www.ahcancal.org/NSNCW and are encouraged to share activities, ideas, and experiences for the observance on social media using the hashtag, #NSNCW.  AHCA will issue a planning guide and product catalog in late February.  For more information on National Skilled Nursing Care Week, visit www.ahcancal.org/NSNCW​.

Long Term Care Sector Addresses Caregiver Shortage with Innovative Workforce Resource Center

Finding a qualified workforce is one of the largest challenges facing long term care providers. The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) recently unveiled new resources to help members attract and retain qualified caregivers in the more than 13,700 member centers nationwide. 

The online Workforce Resource Center includes resources and tools for AHCA/NCAL members to learn more about effective strategies for recruiting, retention and staff development.  The association also announced a partnership with PHI, a leading provider of workforce training programs.  PHI offers a range of services that help providers attract quality workers, promote excellent care, reduce turnover and achieve cost efficiencies. AHCA/NCAL and PHI will provide coaching, training and consulting to help long term care providers deliver quality care. 

“Our members have been clear that staffing is one of their biggest challenges,” said Mark Parkinson, President and CEO of AHCA/NCAL. “The tools we’ve developed, and our partnership with the premier organization in long term care training and development, will provide valuable resources for our members.” 

The health care system has experienced a shortage of trained caregivers for critical roles for some time. The federal government estimates nearly 27 million people will need some kind of long term care by 2050, magnifying the workforce shortage that already exists. 

“AHCA/NCAL will continue to develop workforce resources that help our members maintain the high quality of care they provide for America’s seniors and people with disabilities,” said Parkinson.  

NFP Grassroots Advocacy – Facility Visits over Recess

Gary Kelso, AHCA’s NFP Council Chair, encourages AHCA’s NFP providers to participate in our grassroots advocacy efforts in 2019.  AHCA would like to help you get facility tours and in-district meetings set up over future recess days.  Please provide your name, facility address, and email address and we will craft the invite and send it to you to send to the Congressional office.  The four brief steps for a successful facility tour visit can be found here.  Please feel free to contact Matthew Smyth and Dana Halvorson who can help you with all of the logistics.

AHCA’s NFP Council member, Van Moore (pictured to the right), meets with Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR-2, pictured on the left) at the Oregon Veterans’ Home in The Dalles.  Van discussed with the Congressman issues impacting AHCA/NCAL members, including the observation stays issue. 

NFPs Engaging in the Political Process

For more information on how NFPs can engage in the political process, please review this webinar and handout from Wiley Rein, LLP.  Both documents will give members of 501(c) 3 tax exempt organizations an overview of what they can and cannot do in regards to lobbying and political activity. 

U.S. Congressional Calendars

As you are planning your visits with members of Congress and their staff in Washington, D.C., or in your district, the Congressional calendars will be of assistance to you.  The U.S. House of Representatives calendar for the 116^th Congress, first session, can be found here.  The tentative U.S. Senate schedule for 2019 can be found here.

AHCA/NCAL Advocacy App

If you haven’t already heard about it, then we wanted to alert you to a great app that allows you to keep abreast of AHCA advocacy efforts.  Among other things, it provides important talking points, issue briefs and features that allow you to take action.  It will be useful not only to you, but serves as a great way for providers to weigh in.  You can get the app by clicking on the appropriate black box below.

 

Download our advocacy app!

   

AHCA’s State of the States Clearinghouse

AHCA members have access to key Medicaid and Medicare information through the State of the States Clearinghouse.  The AHCA State of the States Clearinghouse is a one stop shop for key Medicaid and Medicare information impacting the long term care profession.

This resource provides valuable data, including:

• Overview of the demographic landscape;
• State-specific nursing center occupancy and ownership breakouts; 
• Certificate of Need requirements for nursing centers and state licensure requirements; 
• State data on the cost of care for long term services and supports;  
• State data on the total number of Medicare enrollees; 
• Data on state Medicare Advantage plan enrollees and comparisons to the national average; 
• State and national Medicaid expenditure data;
• State Medicaid rates, costs and shortfalls;
• And other significant state-specific data related to payment structure, managed long term services and home and community based services coverage.

AHCA will continue to provide the most up-to-date information through the Clearinghouse and share new data/resources as they become available.  Also be sure to visit the AHCA Medicaid Page to learn more about the program and to access additional AHCA members-only Medicaid resources.

We’ve Got You Covered! AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions Website

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) and National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) offers a variety of comprehensive insurance programs to meet your business needs. AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions programs are designed with exclusive member savings and discounts for both the fully-insured or self-insured members.

AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions also offers the Compass Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC) plan that provides affordable health benefits that employees actually use with no deductibles and low copays.  The MEC plan costs only $162 per month and employers determine how much they contribute toward the premiums from 0-100%.  This short video describes the MEC plan.  For more information, please contact AHCA’s Dave Kyllo at dkyllo@AHCA.org and visit the AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions website.  

Articles and Resources of Interest

• New Medicare Card Tips to Pass Along to Residents – longtermcareleader.com
• Learn About the Highly Popular Minimum Essential Coverage Health Plan in 97 Seconds – longtermcareleader.com
• Look to ACHCA to Advance Your Long Term Care Administrator Career – longtermcareleader.com
• 2019 Quality Award Program - Apply Today! – longtermcareleader.com
• Come to Tampa and Lead. Engage. Discover. – longtermcareleader.com
• Get Your PDPM Answers at the Quality Summit – longtermcareleader.com
• Facility Overpayments to Utility Companies are not Tax Deductible Charitable Contributions – longtermcareleader.com
• Read This If You Remember the F-880 Tag From Your Last Survey – longtermcareleader.com
• Independent Owner Leadership Conference Invites You to Attend Special Session on Patient-Driven Payment Model – longtermcareleader.com
• 2019 Quality Award Program - Apply Today! – longtermcareleader.com

Legislative and Agency Corner

• CMS Promotes the New Electronic System for Provider Reimbursement Review Board Appeals – longtermcareleader.com
• Updated List of Excluded Individuals and Entities (LEIE) Database File – longtermcareleader.com
• IRS Finalized Rule Affecting Deduction Eligibility for Pass-Through Entities – longtermcareleader.com
• New HHS Report Addresses Health Care Industry Cybersecurity – longtermcareleader.com

Webinars of Interest

Stay informed and tune in to ahcancalED for several pre-recorded and live webinars on topics impacting the long-term care profession. The upcoming webinars you may find of interest can be found here. 

AHCA/NCAL Learning Management Website

AHCA/NCAL has a comprehensive online Learning Management System to support the training needs of its members. The website, known as ahcancalED, contains a wealth of information including educational programs, webinars, instructional videos, training courses, and other tools. It is available free to AHCA/NCAL members.

"We created ahcancalED for our members who do not have the time or budget to develop the newest in-service training," said Dr. David Gifford, AHCA/NCAL Senior Vice President of Quality and Regulatory Affairs. "Our objective also was to provide the best and latest educational tools, especially as CMS increases its regulatory requirements about staff training and competency in a number of areas. ahcancalED is designed to help individuals in our profession do a better job of caring for patients and residents and advance in their careers."

The information on ahcancalED is structured to make the online learning experience engaging, meaningful, and interactive for users. The fresh graphics and clearly defined sections within the site make it easy for users to navigate and find the information they need. The site also allows users to track their own learning progress.

Teams of experts from around the country working with AHCA/NCAL staff helped to create the content. "We will constantly be adding new programs and materials so that we can keep the site fresh and dynamic," said Gifford. "We'll continue to look for new ways the site can grow and serve our members. It's a great value-added benefit and a tangible example of our commitment to enhancing quality."

ahcancalED can be accessed at https://educate.ahcancal.org/. Suggestions for content or other site enhancements can be submitted to the ahcancalED team at educate@ahca.org. AHCA/NCAL welcomes ideas that will help improve quality and strengthen the knowledge, skills and attitudes of staff in the long term and post-acute care community.

From the Blog of Josh Linkner

Noted on the Josh Linkner blog, “To Josh Linkner, creativity and innovation are the lifeblood of all human progress. As such, he’s spent his career harnessing the power of creative disruption.  His journey has been non-traditional at every step. As the founder and CEO of four tech companies, Josh built his businesses from a blank page into a combined value of over $200 million. As a hyper-growth CEO of over 20 years, he’s used innovative approaches to topple competitors, fight through adversity, and achieve at the highest levels.”  The bio section of Linkner’s blog goes on to include that, “Josh is an internationally-recognized thought leader and top-rated keynote speaker on innovation, creativity, reinvention, and hyper-growth leadership. His keynotes are focused on not only inspiring audiences, but also sharing actionable strategies to drive meaningful outcomes.” 

Read some of Linkner’s blogs below.  In addition, you can view some of his keynote speaking addresses here.

• Why a Culture of Innovation is the Only Path to Sustainable Growth and Success
• The 14 Rules of History-Making Teams
• Skip the Resolution; Go With a New Year’s Theme Instead
• Lady Gaga’s First Song; Picasso’s First Painting
• The Tyranny of Good Enough
• The Power of Surprise and Delight
• Heads Down vs. Heads Up
• Setbacks: Game Over or Game On?
• A Simple Approach to Boost the Appeal of Your Product or Service
• What’s Your Firebird?

National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities

The National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) holds a monthly call or webinar concerning topics of interest to those who work in the field of aging and disability.  One of the past calls focused on resources for people with Alzheimer’s and related dementias and their caregivers.  Information about future calls, and audio recording of previous ones, can be found here.

Upcoming 2019 Events

• Long Term Care and the Law Conference – February 27 – March 1, 2019
• AHCA’s ID/DD Hill Fly-In Event – March 6, 2019 (contact dhalvorson@ahca.org for further info)
• AHCA/NCAL Quality Summit (Tampa, FL) – March 18 – 20, 2019
• AHCA/NCAL Independent Owner Leadership Conference 2019 (Tampa, FL) – March 20 – 22, 2019    
• AHCA/NCAL 70th Annual Convention & Expo – October 13-16, 2019

2019 Health Care Observances

February 2019 marks, among other observances, American Heart Month, National Cancer Prevention Month, and AMD/Low Vision Awareness Month.  The 2019 Healthcare Observances Calendar can be found here.