What is the Nursing Home Quality Initiative?

September 20, 2009 by admin

The Nursing Home Quality Initiative is part of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) goal to continue to improve the quality of health care for all Americans, including those covered by the Medicare and Medicaid programs. After a successful six-state pilot last spring, CMS released quality of care information on November 12, 2002 for nearly 17,000 nursing homes in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and some U.S. Territories. Consumers can view these measures and much more helpful information on Nursing Home Compare on www.medicare.gov. The quality initiative is a four-prong effort that consists of:

1. Regulation and enforcement efforts conducted by state survey agencies and CMS;
2. Improved consumer information on the quality of care in nursing homes;
3. Continual, community-based quality improvement programs designed for nursing homes to improve their quality of care; and
4. Collaboration and partnership to leverage knowledge and resources.

Additional information about the Nursing Home Quality Initiative can be viewed on www.cms.hhs.gov.