Member Resources

The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing (BORN) has posted a website update reporting on the timing and steps necessary for the nurse licensure compact (NLC) to become operational in the Commonwealth.

Member Update: MA Board of Registration in Nursing announces 12 Month Timeline for Nurse Licensure Compact Implementation; First Half Fiscal Year 2025 Tax Collections: 1% Over Benchmark; Governor Healey Files $425 Million FY25 Supplemental Budget to Fund Emergency Shelter Costs; Register Now for Upcoming Education Programs

Member Update: Mandatory Medicare Provider Revalidation Process Update

Member Update: EOHHS Issues Proposed Temporary Nursing Services (TNS) Agency Rates, Effective March 2025

Register now for these January programs.

The Massachusetts Center for Health Information and Analysis (CHIA) has issued a new Hospital Readmissions Report documenting annual trends in statewide all-payer readmissions and readmission rates, covering SFY2011 through SFY2023.

MassHealth issued Eligibility Operations Memo 25-01 which provides a listing of current MassHealth applications, renewals and member forms.

Massachusetts Senior Care Association extends our best wishes for a happy and healthy 2025!

Please call Governor Maura Healey today at (617) 725-4005 to thank her for signing the Long Term Care Reform Law - Chapter 197 of the Acts of 2024 and to urge her to invest the $280 million necessary to implement the historic reforms in her FY 2026 budget recommendation, which will be released later this month.

REVISED: EOHHS Issues Amendment to Its Request for Applications (RFA) for Nursing Facility Specialized Behavioral Unit: HPPD Requirement Changed and Deadline is January 13, 2025

Legislature Reaches Agreement on 2 Major Health Care Bills in Final Days of Session; Reminder: Please call Governor Healey’s Office to Ensure Our Voices are Heard

Member Update: Governor Healey Reviews Administration’s Accomplishments in First Half of Her Term in Office and Discusses Plans for Upcoming Year; 2024 Annual Physician Disciplinary Summary Action Report; Register Now for Important Upcoming Webinars!

Member Update: Critical Action Alert – We Need All Facilities to Participate and Help Us Secure Funds Necessary to Support Nursing Facility Workforce and Resident Care; Hospital Capacity Constraints; REMINDER: COVID-19 Health Care Personnel Vaccination; MassHealth Nursing Facility Occupancy and Specialty Services Survey; POLST Stakeholder Meeting

Register Now!

AHCA/NCAL is offering a new webinar, Preparing for Upcoming CMS Guidance Changes: Key Updates and Action Items for Compliance, to provide important information about updated surveyor guidance recently released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently posted its latest update to its sub-regulatory guidance for the SNF Mandatory Off-Cycle SNF Provider Enrollment Revalidation process.

Nursing facilities are reminded to remain diligent in their infection control practices to limit the spread of COVID-19 to residents and staff especially during respiratory virus season.

Mass Senior Care is pleased to welcome new members to our Association. Our members have demonstrated their commitment to the senior care provider community by joining Mass Senior Care and we are grateful for their support.

Please call Governor Maura Healey today at (617) 725-4005 to thank her for signing the Long Term Care Reform Law - Chapter 197 of the Acts of 2024 and to urge her to invest the $280 million necessary to implement the historic reforms in her FY 2026 budget recommendation, which will be released next month.

Member Update: Nursing Home MDS Section S Updated Guidance Effective 10/1/2024; Informal Dispute Resolution Meeting – December 18, 2024; Skilled Nursing Facility Value-Based Purchasing Program: December 2024 Confidential Feedback Reports; Death Certificate Registration System Delayed Until Early 2025; Register Now for Important Upcoming Webinars!

Register Now for Upcoming Seminars/Webinars!

As Mass Senior Care previously reported, beginning on January 1, 2025, nursing homes will be required to electronically report information about COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

CMS has posted the updated Nursing Home Care Compare Technical Users’ Guide on the CMS Five Star Quality Rating System Page.

MassHealth has issued a new online form for MassHealth Education and Community Outreach Support: the MassHealth Education and Information Request Form.

This week, Governor Maura Healey, lawmakers and stakeholders attended a signing ceremony to celebrate the passage of the Massachusetts Economic Development Bill, H.5100, An Act relative to Strengthening Massachusetts’ Economic Leadership. The law authorizes the Governor to seek bonds totaling $4 billion to fund capital projects and programs throughout the Commonwealth. We are pleased to report that the law includes a provision authorizing $50 million to fund nursing facility capital improvements.

Governor Maura Healey recently signed the Long Term Care Reform Law - Chapter 197 of the Acts of 2024. The law includes many critical resident care and workforce sections, including a requirement for MassHealth to update its Medicaid funding formula using more current costs for resident care and workforce wages.

Member Update: Revised Long-Term Care Surveyor Guidance – Appendix PP; Register Now for Important Upcoming Webinars!

Member Update: Governor Healey Signs Into Law the FY2024 Closeout Bill to Cover Prior Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Gap: Includes Provision Further Delaying Until 2027 the Patient Billing Transparency Law; DPH Launching Recovery and Monitoring Program for Healthcare Professionals; Register Now for Informative Webinar: Revolutionize Wound Care in Your Nursing Facility; Registration Open for AHCAs Free Building Trust Leadership Academy

Revolutionize Wound Care in Your Nursing Facility Tuesday, January 14, 2025 12:30 pm –1:30 pm VIRTUAL

As previously reported, during the Baker administration Massachusetts incorrectly used $2.5 billion in federal money to provide unemployment benefits that should have been drawn from the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund. The error occurred during the Covid-19 Pandemic at a time when unemployment had escalated.

The NHSN Long Term Care Team and Vaccination Team will provide a refresher training about the newly combined reporting form for Respiratory Pathogens and Vaccination, which went into effect September 30, 2024 as well as the upcoming required reporting fields beginning January 1, 2025.

AHCA/NCAL will host a free webinar Encouraging Vaccinations This Season – So You and Your Residents Can Risk Less and Do More on Monday, December 9 at 4:00 EST for all members and non-members to gain insights about how to overcome vaccine reluctance and help increase vaccine uptake among the long term care population.

Last week, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) published the updated Nursing Facility Industry Segment Specific Compliance Guidelines (Nursing Facility ICPG).

The Legislature sent to Governor Healey its FY 2024 closeout bill which includes a $502 million transfer from the state’s Rainy Day Fund to cover the FY2024 deficit. The Legislature rejected a series of proposals to add new program funding, including additional revenue for nursing facility care, to the closeout budget as its focus was on eliminating the deficit.

Member Update: Legislature Sends to Governor Healey the FY2024 Closeout Bill to Cover Prior Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Gap: Includes Provision Further Delaying Until 2027 the Patient Billing Transparency Law; Health Policy Commission 2024 Health Care Cost Trends Hearing; OIG Publishes Updated Nursing Facility Industry Segment Specific Compliance Guidelines; Overcoming Vaccine Reluctance Webinar; NHSN LTCF Component: Respiratory Pathogens and Vaccination Updates

Member Update: CMS Issues Proposed 2026 Medicare Advantage Program Rule: Includes Measures to Improve Beneficiary Access to Care; Nursing Facility TNS Agency Usage Data Trend; CMS SNF LTC Open Door Forum – December 5; UPDATE: MassHealth MMIS POSC AWS Migration DELAY

We are grateful for your support and your extraordinary dedication to providing compassionate care to the older adults and individuals with disabilities who live in our skilled nursing facilities.

Through a collaboration with the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), the Center of Health for Behavioral Health in Nursing Facilities (COE-NF) is here to better equip nursing facility staff with the knowledge and techniques needed to work with residents who have mental health and substance use conditions.

The next CMS SNF Long Term Care (LTC) Open Door Forum is scheduled for Thursday, December 5, 2024, from 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM Eastern Time (ET).

As a reminder, per 105 CMR 150.000 Standards for Long-Term Care Facilities, all health care personnel (HCP) must be up to date with the most current COVID-19 vaccine no later than December 31, 2024, unless the HCP is exempt from vaccination.

CMS has updated certain Medicare beneficiary non-coverage notice forms that apply to both Medicare Fee-for-Service and Medicare Advantage covered beneficiaries. These forms will become effective January 1, 2025.

On November 21, 2024, Mass Senior Care member Oriol Health Care marked a significant milestone, celebrating 60 years of exceptional service and commitment to the health and well-being of the Wachusett region and beyond.

Please join us on Tuesday, December 3rd, in supporting the Mass Senior Care Foundation’s mission to promote workforce quality and to provide our compassionate caregivers with scholarships as they pursue advanced training and higher education.

At Mass Senior Care’s November 14th Annual Meeting in Southbridge, a standing room only crowd listened to remarks from Department of Public Health (DPH) Commissioner, Dr. Robbie Goldstein, MSCA Board of Directors Chair, Tom Lavallee, former New England Patriot Joe Andruzzi, and MSCA President Tara Gregorio.

Member Update: EOHHS Issues REVISED Request for Applications (RFA) for Nursing Facility Specialized Behavioral Unit; REMINDER: COVID-19 Health Care Personnel Vaccination