Death “Because of” COVID
Who would have thought that a relatively short story called “Death By or With COVID” would have had so many responses from readers? It must have hit an industry chord because it does ring true. Most of the people dying in nursing homes or other senior living communities had serious health issues before COVID struck. And if it wasn’t COVID, it was going to be one of their co-morbidities, if not the 2020-2021 flu season. And then the “news story” hit that only 6% of the COVID deaths were solely from COVID. Apparently, the conspiracy theorists took to their twitter accounts, President Trump included, obviously to downplay the role that COVID has been playing. We swear, we had nothing to do... Read More »
It’s Not As Bad As It Seems, And It Is Getting Better
We have been having a series of off-the-record conversations with CEOs in the senior living industry, and while most are a little cranky about the past six months, many are also becoming a little more optimistic and see the light at the end of the tunnel. That’s the good news. The bad news is that for most of them census remains at low levels they have never seen before. That is beginning to change as leads, tours and move-ins are now moving in an upward direction, especially in the Northeast which was hit first by the pandemic and recovered first as well. We have also been hearing that staffing is returning to more normal levels, with staffing costs for some companies... Read More »
Death By or With COVID
We are sure every provider is sick and tired of hearing about how many residents have died of COVID-19 in a nursing home or assisted living community. The problem is that the classification may be all wrong. Unfortunately, there may be a financial reason for such classifications, as in more reimbursement, or more governmental aid. And for those who can profit from making this pandemic seem worse than it is (yes, they do exist), piling up the number of COVID deaths helps to make their case. It has certainly helped the mainstream media and their advertising dollars. But here is the problem, at least as it relates to the deaths in assisted living, memory care and nursing homes.... Read More » Beware The Flu Season?
Fears of the flu season compounding the effects of the “second wave” of the coronavirus are overblown, and this is why. Almost every conversation surrounding the coronavirus and outbreaks in nursing homes or assisted living communities eventually gets around to the double whammy of a “second wave” combined with the upcoming flu season. Yes, providers will have to be vigilant, but they have never been as well prepared for the flu season as they are today. Think about it. Less than a year ago, do you remember ever walking into any senior care facility where the staff were all wearing masks, where hand sanitizers were everywhere, where your temperature was taken at the entrance,... Read More » Are SNFs About To Go Out Of Business?
A recent survey by the American Health Care Association reveals some disheartening news. If you believe the results of a survey of 463 nursing home providers by the American Health Care Association, well, we are in bigger trouble than I thought. Apparently, 40% of the respondents said they would not be able to sustain operations for another six months at the current “pace,” which we assume to mean the current census and cost levels. A whopping 72% said they would not be able to sustain operations for another year. The problem is that they, unlike the private pay seniors housing industry, have already received several billion dollars of financial aid to help during the pandemic. If they... Read More »