nursing homes

Residents from nine facilities still shuttered in Florida are staying in nearby skilled nursing centers, where staff are working to make them feel comfortable and monitor for "transfer trauma."

Home health care workers are among the lowest paid, shifting the burden of long-term care to aging and overstressed family members or assisted living centers, which are often understaffed themselves.

Among the other measures awaiting the governor's pen was a proposal that would broaden doctors’ ability to prescribe controlled substances through telemedicine.

To address the problem of poor care, President Biden is calling for a federal minimum staffing requirement in nursing homes. The nursing home industry says there aren't workers to fill the jobs.

The nonpartisan organization with millions of members 50 and older is making the issue a top priority.

The state Senate gave final approval to a plan that would change staffing standards in nursing homes, amid debate about how it would affect residents.

Nursing home staffing problems in Florida date back two decades, and boosting wages is the solution most often agreed upon. A 2022 bill called SB 804, however, is causing concerns among those who watch the industry closely or work in it for its proposal to address staffing shortages.

The bill would direct health care providers to allow patients or residents to have visitors. If access needs to be restricted for health or safety concerns, "alternate visitation protocols" would need to be developed.

The demand for home health care has increased even while the supply of workers has been squeezed thanks to how most of the care is paid for.

As the delta variant of the coronavirus caused Florida to become a hotspot for COVID-19 in late July and August, the state’s nursing homes felt the brunt. Using federal data, the senior-advocacy group AARP released a report Wednesday.

A report released Thursday by AARP shows that Florida had the nation’s highest percentage of nursing homes reporting new COVID-19 infections among staff members during a four-week period in June and July. The Florida facilities also had the second-lowest worker vaccination rate in the nation.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services now recommends that visitors and residents, whether vaccinated or unvaccinated, be allowed to meet in person under most circumstances.