Kentucky Injury Law Blog

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has unveiled a new online rating system that allows people to compare the quality of care they can get at nearly 16,000 US nursing homes throughout the United States. The 5-star ranking system, which rates the nursing care facilities using data about nurse staffing, quality measures, and health inspections, was developed to help prospective residents and their families choose the right long-term care facility. For example, among Lexington nursing homes (within 25 miles of the city):

1 Star:
• Cambridge Place
• Winchester Centre for Health & Rehabilitation
• Richmond Place Rehabilitation and Health Center

5 Stars:
• Homestead Nursing Center

According to the new rating system, 23% of Kentucky’s 287 nursing homes that qualify for Medicare and Medicaid Services received a 1-star ranking for “much below average,” while just 10% of Kentucky nursing homes received 5-stars.

While Kentuckians for Nursing Home Reform President Bernie Vonderheid called the new system “historical” and a way to monitor nursing homes, Kentucky Association of Homes and Services for the Aged CEO and President Tim Veno cautioned that the system has its flaws and could sometimes prove misleading. For example, Veno says nursing homes that have more seriously ill patients might receive a lower ranking.

The new rating system is also providing a new nursing standard that calls for every resident to receive at least 4.08 hours of nursing care every day. Nursing Home Ombudsman Agency of the Bluegrass Inc. programs and services director Sherry Culp, however, says that it will take awhile to determine how well the system actually reflects what goes on in the nursing homes.

While the new rating system provides additional information for people deciding whether to admit a loved one to a particular Kentucky nursing home, there is still no substitute for actually visiting a long-term care facility, examining the nursing home, and talking to nursing home workers to make sure that a place is the right fit. Nursing home abuse and nursing neglect continue to be problems in a number of Kentucky nursing homes, and it is important for family members to do everything they can to make sure their sick or elderly loved one isn’t placed in a home where they will get hurt or be ignored.

Medicare rates nursing homes, Kentucky.com, December 19, 2008

Find and Compare Nursing Homes, Medicare.gov

Related Web Resources:
Nursing Home Ombudsman Agency of the Bluegrass Inc.

Kentuckians for Nursing Home Reform