Policy

CMS fines nursing homes more than $15M for Covid-19 violations

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued fines to more than 3,400 nursing homes either for infection control noncompliance or for failing to report Covid-19 data.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said on Monday that it had fined nursing homes a total of $15 million related to the Covid-19 pandemic. The agency said it penalized more than 3,400 nursing homes for noncompliance with infection control or failing to report Covid-19 data.

After directing states to survey more than 15,276 nursing homes, CMS said it had found more than 180 “immediate jeopardy” level findings for infection control, meaning a nursing home’s noncompliance had caused or was likely to cause serious harm to a resident. For these violations, CMS doled out penalties of nearly $10 million to nursing homes in 22 states. The average penalty was $55,000.

For example, at the site of one of the first reported outbreaks in the U.S., the Kirkland Life Care Center in Washington, inspectors reported three “immediate jeopardy” situations, including failure to rapidly identify and manage ill residents, failure to notify the Washington Department of Public Health about the increasing rate of respiratory infection, and the lack of a sufficient backup plan after the facility’s primary clinician became ill.

Some of the fines also went to roughly 3,300 nursing homes that failed to report Covid-19 data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These cases resulted in more than $5.5 million in fines.

“The Trump Administration is taking aggressive enforcement action against Medicare and Medicaid certified nursing homes that fail to implement proper infection control practices,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a news release.  “Now more than ever, nursing homes must be vigilant in adhering to federal guidelines related to infection control to prevent the spread of infectious disease, including COVID-19.  We will continue to hold nursing homes accountable and work with state and local leaders to protect the vulnerable population residing in America’s nursing homes.”

Nursing homes have been hit particularly hard by the pandemic, between shared living spaces, limited staff and protective equipment, and vulnerable patients. As of August 2, CMS said a total of 117,129 nursing home residents had confirmed Covid-19 cases, resulting in 45,958 deaths.

In early March, CMS scaled back non-emergency inspections to focus on infection control and other immediate safety threats.

The agency said nursing homes now face fines of up to $5,000 when cited for lower-level infection control deficiencies that were previously identified, and fines of up to $20,000 if they were cited for infection control twice or more in the past two years.

Photo credit: Waldemarus, Getty Images

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