Projected costs of meeting a promised nursing home staffing mandate leaped $1.3 billion over a five-month period, according to a report issued Dec. 15 by accounting firm CliftonLarsonAllen on behalf of the American Health Care Association.
CLA estimated more than 191,000 nurses and nurse aides would be needed at an annual cost of $11.3 billion under a 4.1 hours per patient day minimum.
That’s up from the firm’s original estimates of 187,000 caregivers and a yearly cost of $10 billion in July. The latest report used updated Payroll Based Journal and Medicare data.
Skilled nursing, which lost about 200,000 COVID-era workers during the pandemic, still lags other sectors in recovery.
“This report once again highlights how our nation’s policymakers should be investing in our long-term caregivers, not mandating quotas,” said Mark Parkinson, president and CEO of AHCA. “Nursing homes have been doing everything they can to recruit and retain staff — including increasing wages — but it has not been enough to stem the tide.”
From the January/February 2023 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
