PHCA Responds to AG Report on Pa Dept. of Health Oversight of Nursing Homes

HARRISBURG — W. Russell McDaid, President and CEO of the Pennsylvania Health Care Association (PHCA), today issued the following statement regarding the Performance Audit Report of the Pennsylvania Department of Health released by the Pennsylvania Auditor General:

“We applaud the Pennsylvania Department of Health for engaging the Auditor General in conducting a performance review audit of the policies and procedures already in place in the Department of Health including recommendations on ways the department can improve how it enforces its statutory authority.

“We concur with the report that ensuring that nursing home residents’ quality of care and quality of life is protected is our shared top priority.

“Pennsylvania’s skilled nursing providers employ more than 120,000 hardworking women and men who daily provide the highest level of care to safeguard our sickest, frailest elderly and disabled residents so they may live a healthy, safe life and age with dignity and respect.

“These dedicated employees work hard to ensure that they are in full compliance with the strict state and federal regulations that govern the care they provide to the approximately 80,000 residents receiving care each and every day. And we welcome the opportunity to work with the department and the surveyors to continue to provide that high level of care.

“We appreciate the Auditor General’s interest in auditing the Department of Health to make sure that nursing homes provide high-quality care. Over the past several months, Pennsylvania’s nursing homes have opened their doors and welcomed the Auditor General into their homes to see for himself the quality of care being provided.

“While we support a number of the Auditor General’s recommendations, we caution that some of the reports’ recommendations are complex and may have unintended negative consequences for resident care.  As such, they require a more in-depth discussion between policymakers and stakeholders.

“We welcome the opportunity to work with the Department of Health and state policymakers to examine these recommendations. However, any discussion of changes to the regulations also needs to include a frank discussion of the financial challenges fueled by chronic underfunding of nursing home care under the Medicaid program and the availability of a competent, highly skilled workforce.

“Despite chronic financial challenges, Pennsylvania’s skilled nursing facilities continue to improve the quality of care being provided with a focus on enhancing treatment services and improving the overall experience for residents, while improving in clinical outcomes, with reductions of urinary tract infections, pressure ulcers, use of antipsychotic medication, resident pain and more.

“More stringent penalties do not alone improve care. It is important to note that when any sanction or penalty is considered, the most important goal is to identify the practice in question, take steps to correct the practice and ensure that any sanction does not jeopardize the facility’s ability to improve resident care, comfort and safety. Taking financial resources away from the bedside does not improve resident care.

“PHCA and our members have made the provision of quality care our highest priority. We look forward to working with Governor Tom Wolf, the state legislature, Secretary of Health Karen Murphy and her team in the Department of Health to continue to ensure that Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable citizens continue to receive the highest level of quality care.”