MON AM News: Stakeholders concerned nursing home staffing standards in federal proposal are unrealistic; PPWI workers vote in favor of joining union

February 12, 2024

— Stakeholders are voicing opposition to proposed minimum staffing standards for nursing homes they say are unrealistic considering the state’s workforce challenges and a lack of dedicated funding.

The Biden administration proposed the standards in September in an effort to address staffing issues exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure residents’ safety.

But Rick Abrams, CEO of the Wisconsin Health Care Association and Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living, told WisPolitics the proposal would put more strain on facilities. Abrams said the policy is well-intentioned, but it would put more pressure on current staff and lead to a “devastating impact on morale.”

“We should be doing everything that we can to say thank you to the people who come to work each and every day in our long-term care facilities and do everything we can to retain them,” Abrams said. “A rule such as the one proposed, I don’t believe comes anywhere close to accomplishing that.”

Abrams noted the state is currently in a workforce shortage, saying nursing homes are the only sector in health care that still hasn’t recovered from the pandemic. Dem Gov. Tony Evers recently formed a task force to tackle the state’s health care workforce challenges.

A 2023 Clifton Larson Allen report contracted by the American Health Care Association found only 15% of the state’s nursing homes would meet the staffing requirements.

A Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services spokesperson told WisPolitics the agency “proposed robust and achievable goals, including flexibilities for hardships, that are informed by the totality of evidence and extensive public input.” CMS is in the process of reviewing comments on the proposed rule.

The policy would require each facility to have at least one registered nurse on site 24/7. It would also establish new minimum staffing requirements of 0.55 hours per resident day for RNs and 2.45 hours per resident day for nurse aides.

The Biden administration has also announced a $75 million investment in scholarships and tuition reimbursement to expand the nursing workforce. But Abrams said a lack of dedicated funding to implement the changes is another problem.

“Our nursing facilities are paid via a fee schedule. So if the nursing facilities’ costs go up but the fee schedule is static, how does the facility make up the difference? That’s a big problem,” Abrams said.

David Mills, managing partner at Milwaukee-based North Shore Healthcare, said patient care, safety and meeting the needs of residents is the number one priority. But he said the staffing recommendations are “very much an overreach,” noting there are standards in place to ensure adequate staffing.

See more at WisPolitics.

— Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin employees have voted in favor of joining the Wisconsin Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, the organizations announced.

Workers voted 56-13 in favor of union representation, according to the National Labor Relations Board. Two challenged ballots won’t be counted because they won’t alter the election’s outcome, the NLRB announcement shows.

“The employer must begin bargaining in good faith with the union,” an NLRB spokesperson said in an email. “Parties have five business days to file objections to the election. If no objections are filed, the results will be certified.”

In a joint statement on the vote, PPWI President and CEO Tanya Atkinson and WFNHP President Connie Smith said they look forward to bargaining in good faith.

“With the care of employees and patients at the center or our collective work, we intend to build a good working relationship as we navigate the next steps together in support of our employees,” they said.

Meanwhile, Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale congratulated the workers for voting to unionize, saying they “will now have a union voice on the job to collectively speak up to enhance quality patient care.”

See the release.

— Marshfield Clinic Health System says it will add a dozen labor and delivery beds at its Eau Claire medical center, boosting its capacity by 550 births per year.

The expansion comes after Hospital Sisters Health System last month announced the closing of HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls, leading to concerns in the community about access to care.

“As other hospitals and health systems are making difficult decisions, we have determined the steps we can take to increase delivery and labor beds for expectant mothers and their families,” said Brad Groseth, president of Marshfield Medical Center-Eau Claire.

He says the medical center is planning for an increase in patient numbers, especially in emergency and urgent care. To accommodate the change, MCHS is recruiting for open positions and plans to hold job fairs, the’s release shows.

See more in the release below, and see a recent related story.

— UW Health has announced the Eastpark Medical Center will begin seeing patients in October as construction on the new facility proceeds on schedule.

The seven-story, 470,000-square-foot center in Madison will provide various outpatient services including oncology and integrated specialty care for women, according to the release. The rollout of services will take place in three phases, including dozens of specialty care areas, and most will be operating by mid-November.

“Whether it is managing a pre-existing heart condition while undergoing cancer treatment or understanding the potential impact of a unique genetic mutation, there will be a team dedicated to the care and treatment of every patient having experts together under one roof,” said Dr. Peter Newcomer, UW Health chief operating officer.

The center is expected to eventually have more than 540 clinical staff and nearly 300 non-clinical positions, according to the release. UW Health is currently hiring for about 130 positions at Eastpark.

See more on the project here, and see the release below.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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— Tufco LP, a manufacturer with operations in Green Bay, is facing nearly $200,000 in federal penalties after the company failed to report an employee’s fingertip had been amputated last year.

The U.S. Department of Labor on Friday announced an OSHA investigation found the cleaning products maker violated safety regulations that would have prevented workers from being exposed to moving machinery, failed to retrain employees when they were assigned to new production areas and didn’t establish a respiratory protection program.

The business also didn’t report the worker injury, which occurred in August 2023, despite being required to do so. The injured employee was on night crew tasked with operating machinery used in the production of scented laundry beads, but product lines “were not locked out or shut down” which put the workers at risk, according to the release.

Appleton-based OSHA Area Director Robert Bonack says the business “expanded their capabilities with new products and machines but failed to assess and mitigate potential hazards” before allowing workers to operate the product lines.

“Each year, hundreds of workers suffer injuries because their employers expose them to machine operating parts and fail to train them in safety procedures,” Bonack said in a statement on the investigation. “Employers should make the health and safety of workers a core value in their workplaces.”

The company has 15 days from receiving the citation to either comply with the penalties, contest OSHA’s penalties or request an informal conference with Bonack, according to the release. It was previously cited for similar worker hazards in 2019 and 2021.

Tufco LP is the largest contract manufacturer of branded wipes in the country, according to its website. The company didn’t respond to a request for comment over the weekend.

See more in the release.

Greater Milwaukee Foundation campaign to improve racial equity raises $700M

First Wisconsin plaintiff joins sales reps’ lawsuit against Johnson Controls

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CONSTRUCTION

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