E-News Update Articles

• CMS to Extend Mandatory SNF Provider Enrollment Revalidation Deadline to January 1, 2026 • DPH Proposed Amendment to Health Care Facility Architectural Plan Review Fee • 2026 AHCA/NCAL National Quality Awards • SNF Provider Preview Reports – Now Available

EOHHS Issues Nursing Facility User Fee Administrative Bulletin: July 1, 2025 Fees

• Important Update: TPS, CHNV Parole, and Work Authorization Reverification • Proposed Regulations for Certified Medication Aides Open for Public Comment • Governor Healey Appoints Dr. Kiame Mahaniah as EOHHS Secretary • PFML Reminders and Updates for Employers

• Impact of One Big Beautiful Bill • Senior Whole Health to Implement a Prior Authorization Procedure for MassHealth NF Rate Add Ons • CMS Publishes Updates to PBJ Manual and FAQs

On July 14, 2025, the CMS will release the new iQIES Electronic Plan of Correction (ePOC) system functionality to participating Nursing Homes and State Agencies. Once ePOC functionality is enabled in iQIES, the current ePOC system will be disabled.

A federal judge has blocked the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) attempt to shorten Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians. On July 1, 2025, District Court Judge Brian M. Cogan ruled that DHS’s February 2025 order – which would have moved up the expiration date from February 3, 2026 to August 3, 2025 – violated the Administrative Procedure Act. As a result, the partial vacatur has been halted, and at this time, no appeal has been filed.

On July 4, 2025, Governor Healey signed into law the FY 2026 budget totaling $61 billion, which includes $102 million in new Medicaid nursing facility funding, and also includes a provision to increase the nursing facility provider tax to the maximum amount under existing federal law.

• REMINDER: August 1 Mandatory SNF Medicare Provider Enrollment Revalidation • EOHHS Opens DCC-Q Portal for Data Entry: Deadline July 31

In addition to the new $102 million in new Medicaid nursing facility funding contained in the FY2026 budget signed into law by Governor Healey, the new state budget requires the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) to increase the nursing facility provider tax to the maximum amount under existing federal law, which totals 6% of total annual nursing facility revenue.

• EOHHS Issues Updated RY25 DCC-Q Final Filing Template to Correct for Formula Errors • Judge Blocks Early Termination of Haitian TPS; DHS Rescinds TPS for Honduras and Nicaragua • CMS Alert: Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Phishing Fax Requests

• EOHHS Issues RY25 DCC-Q FINAL Filing Instructions • Certified Medication Aide Regulations Go Before Public Health Council July 9 • DPH Issues Memorandum: Den Dialysis Guidance

• Governor Healey Signs Into Law FY 2026 Budget • EOHHS Adopts Emergency Regulation

• Trump Administration Announces End of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians • CRITICAL ACTION ALERT: Call Governor Healey to Urge Her to Support Quality Nursing Facility Care!

Member Update: Conference Committee Files FY2026 Budget Recommendation

Effective May 1, 2025, members eligible for Family Assistance who have a qualifying hospitalization and require nursing facility level of care may be eligible to receive the same level of benefits as MassHealth Standard or CommonHealth through the Family Assistance Long Term Services and Supports Pathway (FA LTSS Pathway).

The Massachusetts Senior Care Foundation’s annual Scholarship Program assists long term care staff in meeting their personal and professional goals through furthering their education. Since 1985, the Foundation has awarded nearly $3 million dollars in scholarships to more than 1,600 deserving long term care staff, known as “Foundation Scholars.” The annual program, funded through the generosity of long term care providers and related organizations, supports the Foundation's mission to promote the development of a skilled and committed workforce. The Foundation is now accepting applications for its 2025 awards.

2025 Unit Manager Training Program Tuesdays in September: 9/9, 9/16, 9/23, 9/30 2 In-Person Sessions and 2 Virtual Sessions: September 9, 9:00 AM – 3:30 PM, In-Person, Whitney Place at Medway September 16, 12:30 PM – 3:30 PM, Virtual September 23, 12:30 PM – 3:30 PM, Virtual September 30, 9:00 AM – 3:30 PM, In-Person, The Willows at Westborough Click Here to Register Register for Zimmet Healthcare’s Annual Conference! The Zimmet Healthcare Annual Conference is a premier event for professionals

On June 26, 2025, the Department of Public Health (DPH) issued a clinical advisory in response to the rising number of invasive Group A Streptococcus (GAS) infections and reported clusters in long-term care facilities across the Commonwealth.

Mass Senior Care is pleased to welcome new members to our Association. Our members have demonstrated their commitment to the senior care provider community by joining Mass Senior Care and we are grateful for their support.

Earlier this year, OSHA issued a memorandum announcing an immediate suspension, or “stay,” of its COVID-19 recordkeeping and reporting requirements under 29 CFR 1910.502. This change, effective until further notice, relieves nursing homes, assisted living communities, hospitals, and other health care settings from maintaining a dedicated COVID-19 log or reporting COVID-19 fatalities and hospitalizations as previously required.

The Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) has filed an Emergency Adoption to 101 CMR 346.00: Rates for Certain Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders Programs for the purpose of improving access to Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD), including methadone, for nursing facility residents with substance use disorders. It encourages Opioid Treatment Programs (OTPs) to deliver medications directly to nursing facilities where facility staff can administer them to residents, reducing the need for daily transportation.

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) has announced the 2025 Silver – Achievement in Quality Award recipients. MSCA is proud to recognize four member facilities that have earned this achievement.

• EOHHS Provides OTP Rate Add-On for Delivery of Medications to NFs • Action Needed: MassHealth Long Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Provider Directory • Massachusetts DPH Announces New LGBTQIA+ Training Initiative

On July 14, 2025, the CMS will release the new iQIES Electronic Plan of Correction (ePOC) system functionality to participating Nursing Homes and State Agencies. Once ePOC functionality is enabled in iQIES, the current ePOC system will be disabled. Nursing Home providers that currently utilize ePOC will need to request the Provider ePOC Administrator role in iQIES after you sign up for HCQIS Access Roles & Profile (HARP) access.

• Invasive Group A Streptococcus Infections • MassHealth Issues Family Assistance Pathways NF Bulletin • MassHealth Provider Online Service Center Pre-login and Post-login Page Refresh • ePOC Transition to iQIES • OSHA Suspension of COVID-19 Record Keeping and Reporting • Updated MassHealth Provider Service Center Hours

• Informal Dispute Resolution Meeting • 2025 Scholarship Application Now Available

On June 9th and 10th, Mass Senior Care members and staff traveled to Washington, DC to participate in the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living’s (AHCA/NCAL) Congressional Briefing. In meetings with members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, MSCA members discussed the vital importance of Medicaid funding to ensure access to quality nursing facility care and our grave concerns about any proposed cuts to the program.

CMS recently posted an updated version of the draft Minimum Data Set (MDS) 3.0 Item Sets v1.20.1v3 and draft Item Matrix v1.20.1v3. These are located in the Downloads section on CMS’ Minimum Data Set (MDS) 3.0 Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) Manual page.

On June 18, 2025, CMS released QSO-25-19-ALL Release of CMS-2567: Statement of Deficiencies and Plan of Correction. CMS is updating their practice to align with the Nursing Home CMS-2567 process already in regulation. The Nursing Home CMS-2567 regulation allows the 2567 to be released within 14 days of transmission to the facility. This update does not change the current process for nursing homes.

On June 17, 2025, CMS announced that it is making permanent a pilot program to identify Medicare billing fraud through its newly created Fraud Defense Operations Center (FDOC).

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The June 2025 Quarterly Confidential Feedback Reports for the fiscal year (FY) 2026 Skilled Nursing Facility Value-Based Purchasing (SNF VBP) Program are now available to download via the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES).

Nursing facilities are reminded to remain diligent in their infection control practices to limit the spread of COVID-19 to residents and staff. At the expiration of the PHE, DPH released guidance on Organizational Policies and Procedures for Mitigating Respiratory Illness. Nursing facilities must continue to identify and monitor respiratory illness metrics to indicate when there are increased levels which may necessitate implementing these infection control measures.

Mass Senior Care facility members gathered earlier this week for the two-day MSCA Leadership Conference, When Caring Gets Complicated: Strategies for Difficult Situations, at the Beauport Hotel in Gloucester. The Conference addressed the impact that challenging or non-compliant residents and family members can have on key operational areas, including regulatory compliance (deficiencies and complaints), financial stability (accounts receivable and bad debt growth), and workforce challenges (staff satisfaction, retention, and turnover).

• Nursing Home Compare and Five Star Update • 2567s and Plan of Correction • CMS Announces Launch of Fraud Defense Operations Center

CMS has posted the updated Appendix PP of the State Operations Manual (SOM) as outlined in QSO-25-14-NH.

On June 18, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released QSO-25-20-NH Updates to Nursing Home Compare. In the memo, CMS notes several changes to how items are displayed on the website related to performance data for nursing home chains, standard survey cycles for the inspection rating, updated long-stay antipsychotic measures, and removal of the COVID-19 vaccine measures.

• Supreme Court Allows Federal Government to Proceed with Changes to CHNV Humanitarian Parole Program • Confirmed Measles Case in Boston

• EOHHS Issues Administrative Bulletin Updating Allowable Items to be Included in DCC-Q Calculation • Vaccine Access

• President Trump Issues Full or Partial Travel Ban on 19 Countries • President Trump Issues Memorandum Targeting State Directed Payments • SNF VBP Program Reports • Updated Appendix PP Now Available • Updated Draft MDS 3.0 Item Sets Now Available • MassCyberCenter & CISCO Talos 2024 Year in Review Webinar

Join AHCA/NCAL in Las Vegas, NV from October 19-22, 2025 for their annual Convention & Expo! Delivering Solutions 25 emphasizes AHCA/NCAL’s commitment to improving the quality of life for residents in long term care and assisted living facilities.

On July 14, 2025, CMS will release the new Internet Quality Improvement & Evaluation System (iQIES) Electronic Plan of Correction (ePOC) system functionality to participating Nursing Homes and State Agencies.

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) has announced the 2025 Bronze – Commitment in Quality Award recipients. MSCA is proud to recognize 26 member facilities that have earned this achievement.

• Clinical Advisory on Botulism • ePOC Transition to iQIES • Prior Authorization for Post-Acute Care Admission

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This year, National Certified Nursing Assistants Week is from June 12th to June 18th, 2025. This week aims to celebrate and recognize the incredible work that CNAs do everyday in our nursing facilities and assisted living residences. Mass Senior Care is offering Certificates of Appreciation to distribute to your CNAs during National Certified Nursing Assistants Week (June 12-18, 2025).

The Zimmet Healthcare Annual Conference is a premier event for professionals in the skilled nursing and post-acute care sectors. Scheduled for August 12–14, 2025, at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, this year’s theme, “Reimbursement RoZetta Stone,” centers on decoding the complexities of today’s healthcare reimbursement systems.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Justice filed notice that it would appeal the Northern District of Texas April 2024 court ruling that vacated the federal staffing mandate.

• REMINDER: Reporting Due Today on Expanded Suitability Review and Management Companies • MA Attorney General Issues Guidance on Immigration and Customs Enforcement

With the recent release of Quarter 4 of 2024 Payroll Based Journal (PBJ) data, the amount of temporary nursing service (TNS) contract labor being utilized by Massachusetts’ nursing facilities decreased again compared to Quarter 3 of 2024.