Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

New regulations permit long-term care facilities to hire paid feeding assistants.

Nursing homes struggling with the shortage of certified nurse aids got a measure of relief Sept. 26 from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

In a final rule published in the Federal Register, CMS changes Medicare and Medicaid rules to allow nursing homes to employ paid feeding assistants to help residents eat and drink. Currently, CNAs typically help residents with feeding, in combination with family members and volunteers. And until now, CMS' rules for nursing homes didn't allow for paid "single-task workers" such as feeding assistants.

"Nursing homes will now be able to free their nurses and nurse aides to help them focus on their residents' other health care needs and on those residents with complex feeding problems," says Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.

Nursing homes must still make sure the feeding assistants are trained. Under the rule, assistants will have to complete a state-approved training program lasting at least eight hours. In addition, the use of assistants must square with any state laws that apply to nursing homes.

Long-term care facilities are cheering the development. "Common sense dictates that when America's health care system is being undermined by a chronic nurse staffing shortage, we should do everything conceivable to better the lives of our patients and help over-extended nurses and nurse assistants complete vitally important tasks," says American Health Care Association President Dr. Charles Roadman. "This move will undoubtedly aid providers in their efforts to improve the quality of care."

The regulations go into effect Oct. 27.

To see the rule, go to http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a030926c.html.