CMS is issuing notifications to facilities that were determined to be out of compliance with the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (SNF QRP) requirements for CY 2024, which will affect their FY 2026 Annual Payment Update (APU).

Don't Miss Out! The Foundation is now accepting applications for its 2025 awards. Please note that the application and all required components must be submitted online at the same time and received by Massachusetts Senior Care Foundation no later than 4:00 pm on Friday, August 8, 2025.

This week, Veterans from several Mass Senior Care member facilities were honored with the unforgettable experience of flight in a restored WWII-era open-cockpit biplane, courtesy of the nonprofit organization Dream Flights, with support from Mass Senior Care and Alliance Health & Human Services.

• Voluntary Recall of Bicillin® L-A • Massachusetts Unemployment Rate Remains Unchanged at 4.8%

Governor Healey Announces Immediate Measures to Enhance Safety in Assisted Living Residences

• Boston Globe Editorial on One Big Beautiful Bill Act • EOHHS Nursing Facility User Fee Regulation Hearing • REMINDER: ePrescribing Requirements • Informal Dispute Resolution Meeting • CMS Announces Medicare Revalidation Deadline Extension

The CMS security team has authorized an increase of the iQIES system timeout to 30 minutes. Previously, users would be automatically logged out of the system after 15 minutes of inactivity. This change is now in effect.

The SNF Provider Preview Reports have been updated and are now available. These reports contain provider performance scores for quality measures, which will be published on the compare tool on Medicare.gov and the Provider Data Catalog (PDC) during the October 2025 release.

Nursing facilities are reminded to remain diligent in their infection control practices to limit the spread of COVID-19 to residents and staff. At the expiration of the PHE, DPH released guidance on Organizational Policies and Procedures for Mitigating Respiratory Illness. Nursing facilities must continue to identify and monitor respiratory illness metrics to indicate when there are increased levels which may necessitate implementing these infection control measures. One possible metric is the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) Wastewater COVID-19 Tracking which measures the SARS-CoV2 levels.