Wichita Standard

The House Ways and Means Committee has passed the Ensuring Seniors' Access to Quality Care Act, a bipartisan legislation introduced by Rep. Estes and Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Virginia). The bill permits nursing homes to continue operating their in-house Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) training program, even if they incur fines above a certain amount for reasons unrelated to direct resident care.

Rep. Estes expressed his support for the legislation, stating that it takes into account the current workforce challenges faced by nursing homes without compromising on quality care for residents. He further noted that his bill will help nursing homes comply with the recently finalized Nursing Home Minimum Staffing Rule from President Biden, despite his disagreement with the rule.

Chairman of Ways and Means, Jason Smith (R-Missouri), highlighted that American nursing homes are experiencing a staffing crisis. He stated that President Biden's new mandate would exacerbate the existing nationwide nurse shortage and put seniors' care at risk. However, he praised Rep. Estes' bill for ensuring qualified nursing homes can continue to operate CNA training programs, grow the healthcare workforce, and continue serving seniors in need of care.

Current statistics reveal that 99% of nursing homes have job openings and 46% have had to limit new patient admissions due to staff shortages. Almost 20% of nursing homes have closed part of their facility due to lack of staff. The Biden administration’s recently finalized mandate is expected to worsen workforce shortages across the country as it requires struggling nursing homes to hire over 100,000 additional nurses and nurse aides.

Under current law, Medicare prevents nursing homes from operating a CNA training program for two years if they are fined a certain amount. This rule applies even if the fine was issued for reasons unrelated to direct resident care such as having expired crackers in a food pantry. Although there is a waiver available under current law, it is seldom used and has proven inadequate. Rep. Estes' legislation aims to address this issue.

Rep. Estes concluded his remarks by urging support for the bill, emphasizing that it will improve the lives of America's seniors.