CARIE advocated for critical COVID-19 related policy change in Pennsylvania’s Long Term Care (LTC) facilities and organized “PA Advocates for Improved COVID-19 Response in LTC Facilities” to coordinate advocacy efforts among leading advocacy groups in Pennsylvania in response to the crisis. Please read our call to action, Immediate Actions Pennsylvania Must Take to Address the COVID-19 Crisis in Long-Term Care Facilities, that includes over three dozen recommendations. An Executive Summary, Recommendations Chart and a Combined Position Paper are also available for review.
Addressing Racial Disparities in Long Term Care Facilities Advocacy
- Letter to state officials with data collection and analysis recommendations (Sent 3/5/21)
- Letter to state officials with vaccine recommendations (Sent 3/8/21)
- Joint testimony for the House Aging & Older Adult Services Committee hearing on vaccines in long term care facilities (3/10/21)
- A Report on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Pennsylvania’s Nursing Homes with Recommendations for Immediate Action (8/2021)
Pennsylvania (PA) Nursing Facility Regulations Advocacy
On September 27, 2022 the PA Department of Health released the final-form regulations for all four proposed packages. CARIE along with fellow advocates submitted comments for all four proposed packages in including comments for the fourth package. Here are comments for the final form that were also presented at the Independent Regulatory Review Commission’s (IRRC) public meeting on October 28, 2022 where all four packages were unanimously approved.
CARIE extends a heartfelt thanks to all who supported our advocacy effort to update Pennsylvania’s nursing facility regulations for the first time in 25 years! While we had hoped the final form regulations would have included stronger resident rights provisions, higher staffing minimums, and greater staff training especially around dementia capable care, the regulations are an important step toward needed change in current policies to improve the standard of care in PA’s nursing homes. The updated regulations strengthen the current regulations especially around change in ownership and the application process for a license and increases transparency. The change in ownership provisions will give the Department of Health the ability to help prevent poor performing providers and bad actors from buying and operating more facilities in PA. Some examples of improvement include:
- An increase in staffing requirements
- Increased protections for residents regarding facilities closures
- Increased requirements regarding proof of financial responsibility
- Increased notice and opportunity for public comment regarding applications for licensure
- Recognizes residents’ right to care without discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression
- Increased requirements for availability of social workers
- Inclusion of residents and their representatives in the facility’s development of policies and procedures relating to residents’ rights
Recommendations to Improve Pennsylvania’s Nursing Facility Regulations:
- CARIE hosted a webinar, Private Equity Investors as Nursing Home Owners: Impact on Quality of Resident Care and Lack of Accountability, on February 3, 2022. The goal is to help inform policymakers, regulators, and advocates in PA about the complex business practices private equity investors use to profit from nursing home ownership and the hidden ways they divert funds for resident care for their personal gain. Please view the webinar recording and slides to learn more about this complex issue.
- Cover letter that summarizes our recommendations (Sent 11/23/2020)
- Recommendations in a track-changes, marked up version of the existing regulations
- Combined cover letter/summary and recommendations
- AARP PA’s Letter of Support
- Delaware Valley and Greater Pennsylvania Chapters of the Alzheimer’s Association’s Letter of Support
Other advocacy includes:
- Issue brief – Urgent Call to Action – Recommendations to Mitigate Crisis of Prolonged Isolation in LTC Facilities
- Letter sent to Governor Wolf and others requesting a rapid Targeted Response to COVID-19 in Long Term Care Facilities
- Letter requesting a Moratorium on Involuntary Nursing Home Discharges sent to officials at the Department of Health and others
