DOH Poised to Release Next Round of Nursing Home Staffing Compliance Notices
(May 28, 2024) The Department of Health (DOH) intends to post letters on the Health Commerce System (HCS) this week notifying each nursing home of their compliance with State staffing requirements during the fourth quarter of calendar year 2022. Providers should have received a message late Thurs., May 23rd, indicating that the notices would be distributed through the Health Commerce Distribution Management System (HCDMS) and could be accessed by those individuals listed in the roles of Administrator, Backup Administrator, Operator, and Backup Operator. This is the same process that DOH used for the prior two quarters. Providers will have 10 business days from the date of the notice to submit requests for penalty reductions or redeterminations. We urge members to check the HCDMS on a regular basis this week; we will let members know when we have confirmed that the notices have been posted.
The notice should indicate whether the facility was deemed compliant with each of the hours-per-resident-day (HPRD) requirements (i.e., 1.1 for Registered Nurses (RNs)/Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) combined, 2.2 for Aides, and 3.5 overall) on a quarterly average basis. Those deemed out of compliance on a quarterly basis are subject to penalties for each day of the quarter during which they missed any one of the three requirements. The letter should include a list of the dates of non-compliance. The letter should also contain links for submitting redetermination and penalty reduction requests.
Those who disagree with the State’s determination should complete and submit the online Redetermination Request form and upload the required documentation. Those deemed to be out of compliance can provide information on their efforts to comply by completing the online Penalty Reduction Application. A recording of the webinar that DOH hosted to review the Penalty Reduction Applications related to the most recent previous quarter is available here; the associated presentation slides are here.
Members will recall that the Health Commissioner had previously issued a Determination of an Acute Labor Supply Shortage covering Quarter 2, Quarter 3, and Quarter 4 of 2022. It includes RNs, LPNs, and Aides and is available here. The Governor’s State of Emergency Declaration Due to Staffing Shortages (Executive Order 4) was in effect for all of 2022, ending in June 2023.
Based on LeadingAge NY analysis, 58 percent of non-profit homes, 27 percent of public homes, and 89 percent of for-profit homes were out of compliance during Quarter 4 of 2022. Members can access the staffing tool that can be used to help validate the DOH compliance determination for that quarter here.
Providers experiencing difficulty with accessing the notice on the HCDMS should ensure that the individual doing so is listed in the role of Administrator or Operator and contact the Commerce Account Management Unit (CAMU) at camu@health.ny.gov or 866-529-1890 if further assistance is needed. DOH is fielding questions at nhsafestaffing@health.ny.gov.
Contact: Darius Kirstein, dkirstein@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8841