Following last week’s update on CMS’s Nurses for Nursing Homes initiative, LeadingAge Kansas participated in a meeting with CMS, workforce partners, and other LeadingAge state associations to learn more about implementation and how eligible members can participate.
The Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence, the workforce partner serving Kansas, will help participating nursing homes recruit nursing staff at no cost to the nursing home. Members are encouraged to connect directly with the Center and share their current nursing job openings to help its team identify recruitment opportunities.
The Center plans to reach out to eligible nursing homes, but members do not need to wait to be contacted. Email is the quickest way to connect. Members should also watch for phone outreach from the Center, whose team is reviewing nursing home websites for job openings.
Contact the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence:
- Phone: 1-888-687-7311
- Information sessions: Register for a West Region information session
LeadingAge national has provided additional clarification on how CMS selected eligible nursing homes. CMS used core-based statistical areas (CBSAs) to classify locations as rural or urban, and all nursing homes in areas classified as rural were deemed eligible. CMS then selectively added nursing homes in non-rural areas based on local workforce availability, measured by the number of nurses relative to the population.
CMS indicated that it is prioritizing nursing homes already on the eligibility list and is not adding nursing homes to the list at this time. Nursing homes seeking re-consideration may email CMS at nursesfornursinghomes@cms.hhs.gov to request review, but a request does not guarantee inclusion.
