On April 22, 2024, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its final rule on Minimum Staffing Standards for Long-Term Care Facilities and Medicaid Institutional Payment Transparency Reporting. The regulation establishes the first-ever federal minimum staffing levels for nursing homes and introduces requirements to enhance facility assessments and state reporting on the percentage of Medicaid payments spent on direct care in institutional settings.

This Better Care Playbook blog post, coauthored by CHCS’ Emma Rauscher, Carrie Graham, and Torshira Moffett, reviews existing regulations on nursing home staffing and breaks down CMS’ new staffing requirements, including how states will need to respond. It also highlights research findings that are important for policymakers to understand related to nursing home staffing.