The House Care Affiliation of America (HCAOA) helps residence care-focused laws launched by Vice President-elect JD Vance (R-OH) and Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH).

The Steady Expert Nursing High quality Enchancment Act (S.4122) was launched in April and would redefine “non-public nursing companies” as “steady expert nursing companies.” It could additionally require the Secretary of Well being and Human Companies to take steps to determine nationwide high quality requirements for the care of those companies.

“The care supplied by steady expert nursing permits sufferers to remain at residence whereas receiving the care they want,” Hassan mentioned in an April information launch. “Medicaid requirements should replicate the distinctive work of nurses who present complicated one-on-one care to people of their properties. I’m happy to assist this bipartisan laws that may assist us higher perceive and consider the important work of expert nurses who assist folks with disabilities thrive of their properties.”

The Steady Expert Nursing High quality Enchancment Act would additionally permit states to trace extra significant information to assist enhance the standard of care.

This laws particularly addresses persevering with expert nursing companies beneath Medicaid. HCAOA believes that the invoice is a step in the precise course.

“By establishing nationwide high quality requirements, this laws promotes consistency and accountability amongst healthcare suppliers, which is important to bettering affected person outcomes,” Eric M. Reinarman, vice chairman of presidency relations, informed HHCN in an e mail. “We see this as a optimistic improvement for the broader residence care sector and are inspired by the invoice's concentrate on high quality enchancment.”

In keeping with Reinarman, HCAOA was concerned within the early levels of drafting this invoice.

“[Private duty nursing services] suppliers have all the time had issue educating lawmakers about their companies due to different equally named companies equivalent to 'non-public responsibility,'” he mentioned. “[Private duty nursing services] can also be usually lumped in with residence well being care, when in actuality it’s a distinctive Medicaid profit with its personal necessities and lifesaving advantages. This laws offers the business the chance to resolve a few of these points in a bipartisan method with minimal fiscal influence.”

Finally, Reinarman believes that if the laws passes, it’s going to scale back confusion surrounding advantages and in addition create uniformity amongst states and federal rules.

“HCAOA believes this represents a optimistic shift as a result of clearer and extra constant high quality measures can assist suppliers ship higher, extra dependable care,” he mentioned. “It should additionally be sure that sufferers in all states obtain a comparable stage of high-quality service, which is important for folks with complicated medical wants who depend on [continuous skilled nursing] companies for each day residing and well being administration.”