With aging veterans seeking nursing home care, Senators called for more clarity and information on quality review

Washington (September 23, 2019) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass), Veterans Affairs Committee Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-Mont.), and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) announced that the Government Accountability Office (GAO), as a result of their request, will review the quality rating system for community living centers (CLCs), or nursing homes, operated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Senators sent a letter to the GAO with the request in August. 

Over the last several years, there have been a number of reports indicating poor quality ratings as well as disturbing anecdotal stories of substandard treatment and conditions at some CLCs across the country. When the VA first released CLC star rating data in 2018, nearly half of the nation’s centers were rated one-star, the lowest rank. The latest data has shown improvement in these ratings but much work remains to be done.

“We thank the Government Accountability Office for accepting our request for this important review,” said Senators Markey, Tester, and Warren. “We appreciate that many community living centers care for a disproportionately complex resident population with multiple chronic and difficult conditions. But public concerns and reporting underscore the need to ensure CLCs have the tools, resources, and properly trained staff necessary to provide the quality nursing home care our veterans need and deserve.”

A copy of the GAO’s letter to the Senators can be found HERE. 

The Senators requested the GAO to study the following questions:

• How does VA develop its CLC quality ratings, including ratings for inspections, quality measures, and staffing?
• What are the specific inputs used to develop these ratings and how do inspection results inform them?
• How does VA ensure that the inputs on which the ratings are based are accurate?
• What do the CLC quality rating data reveal about trends in quality across CLCs nationally? For example, what deficiencies are commonly cited on inspections, what quality measures are particularly problematic, and what do the staffing levels and training reveal?
• How does VA use the rating data in its oversight? For example, what actions does VA take to address concerns identified in the CLC quality rating data, and for poorly performing CLCs in particular? Would more training be helpful to help address key concerns? Are there best practices from top performing CLCs that those facilities could share with other CLCs?

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