December 5, 2025

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The Latest News

In Memory of Kari Taylor

It is with deep sadness that we share the passing of Kari Taylor, a cherished member of our long-term care community and this year’s KHCA/KCAL Social Service Designee of the Year.

Kari was known for her larger-than-life personality—someone whose presence could fill a room with energy, warmth, and a contagious sense of optimism. She brought that same spirit to her work every single day. As a Social Service Designee, Kari approached her role with unmatched compassion, advocating fiercely for residents and supporting families through some of their most vulnerable moments. Her colleagues often described her as a bright light, someone who lifted others up and made their days a little easier.

Winning SSD of the Year was a well-deserved recognition of her dedication, skill, and heart. Kari represented the very best of what it means to serve in long-term care, and her impact will be felt for years to come by the residents whose lives she touched and the team members she inspired.

We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, and the many coworkers who loved and admired her. Kari leaves behind a legacy of joy, compassion, and wholehearted service—one that will not be forgotten.

CMS Suspends SNF Provider Enrollment Revalidation Deadline Indefinitely

Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) informed AHCA that the mandatory off-cycle SNF provider enrollment revalidation deadline of January 1, 2026, has been suspended indefinitely. AHCA has been regularly advocating to CMS about this deadline, and we appreciate the agency granting our request for relief given the many difficulties providers have faced recently and throughout the process. CMS is not announcing a new compliance date at this time and will post a formal notice in the coming days.

Why This is Happening

Over the past year, SNF providers have experienced various challenges with meeting the complex and extensive new provider enrollment reporting requirements. AHCA advocated to CMS about these issues, which resulted in three prior deadline extensions in 2025.

Over the past several weeks, hundreds of AHCA members reported new, serious technical problems with the CMS PECOS provider enrollment system. AHCA escalated these issues to CMS officials seeking resolution and requesting a suspension of the January 1, 2026, compliance deadline so these issues could be resolved. We voiced concerns about the additional burdens impacted providers are facing, and the significant risk of payment suspensions should they not meet the reporting deadline due to these systems issues. AHCA appreciates that CMS recognized the significance of the current issues and agreed to an indefinite compliance deadline suspension.

What Providers Should Do

SNF providers that have not yet submitted their off-cycle provider enrollment revalidations should be on the lookout for the upcoming formal CMS announcement in the next few days. It may contain additional important details about next steps. AHCA will share that information when it becomes available.
SNF providers that have previously submitted their provider enrollment Form CMS-855A information via PECOS or paper submission and received a request for more information to be submitted by a certain date, should still submit that requested information by the specified due date. Contact the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) provider enrollment helpdesk for further guidance if there are systems-related problems that may impact meeting the stated response deadline.

It is important to remember that the underlying SNF provider enrollment reporting policies have not changed. Every effort should be taken to assure the needed data elements regarding ownership and operational and managerial control disclosable entities and individuals are available to submit once further CMS guidance is issued.

AHCA will continue our advocacy efforts to seek more rational regulations and streamline reporting requirements, including related to the SNF provider enrollment policies. But today’s news is an encouraging step in the right direction.

Please contact the AHCA SNF provider enrollment revalidation helpdesk with any questions.

Conversation Reignited Over Assisted Living Fire Evacuation Planning

Past Chairman of the National Fire Protection Association Health Care Section Executive Board David Hood wrote in Provider Magazine (12/1, 151K) that a fire this year at a Massachusetts assisted living community "has reignited a critical and complex conversation around assisted living fire evacuation planning – specifically, how well communities understand their unique fire protection features, evolving resident capabilities, staffing availability, and ongoing training and drills." Hood concludes, "Ultimately, assisted living communities require a customized fire safety and evacuation planning approach that complies with applicable codes."

A Message from KDADS: Vendor Selected for the Kansas Quality of Life Surveys

The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) Aging Commission is pleased to share an important update about the Kansas Quality of Life (KQoL) Surveys. KDADS has contracted with Vital Research to assist in conducting the Kansas Quality of Life Surveys statewide.

Vital Research brings strong, national experience in Quality-of-Life surveying, and KDADS is glad to partner with them as we move this project forward. Our teams have already begun meeting and planning to ensure a smooth and successful start. We are looking forward to your engaging with Vital Research in this effort.

The KQoL Surveys are designed to better understand the daily experiences of individuals living in nursing homes across Kansas. The results will be publicly available and will help Kansans make informed decisions when choosing care for themselves or their loved ones. Nursing homes will also receive helpful feedback that can guide improvements and support high-quality, person-directed practices.

With the support of Vital Research, KDADS is ready to begin the next steps of this important initiative. Nursing homes will receive more information about participation in the coming weeks.

In Case You Missed It

CMS Issues Rule Repealing Minimum Staffing Mandate

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Tuesday released an interim final rule (IFR) that repeals parts of the Biden Administration’s staffing mandate. Specifically, the IFR rescinds implementation of the 24/7 on-site registered nurse requirement, as well as the specific minimum number of nursing hours per resident per day requirements.

Nursing home providers are still required to comply with the facility assessment provision, which has already gone into effect. We will continue to encourage the Administration to rescind duplicative reporting requirements that do not support quality improvement. This rule also does not impact the Medicaid Institutional Transparency provisions that were previously finalized.

This rule takes effect 60 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register. There is a 60-day comment period, with all comments due by February 2, 2026.

This IFR is another confirmation that the federal staffing mandate is over. It follows two U.S. District Court decisions earlier this year—including AHCA’s case in the Northern District of Texas—which ruled that CMS exceeded its authority in setting standards beyond what Congress enacted. These rulings were then upheld when the U.S. Department of Justice withdrew their appeals in September. This prevents future administrations from issuing such a regulation later. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed by Congress this summer also included a 10-year moratorium on implementing the minimum staffing requirements in the rule. Even CMS conceded, in the IFR, that the staffing requirements, as finalized, imposed a one-size-fits-all policy that would have resulted in closures and access barriers in rural and tribal communities.

AHCA/NCAL has remained committed to fighting the federal staffing mandate from the very beginning. We all want more staff, but this was not the way to do it. We will continue to advocate for practical solutions, like through our Caregivers for Tomorrow initiative, that support building a strong long term care workforce and the continued delivery of high-quality care for our residents.

But we cannot take all the credit. Our members – YOU – have been a critical part of this success. You were our partners, our voices on Capitol Hill and back in your districts on why this rule would have been detrimental to our profession and our residents. Thank you for all your efforts. I genuinely believe that together we can accomplish anything and ensure our residents continue to get the care they deserve.

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Clifton J. Porter, II

President & CEO, AHCA/NCAL

Also reported in the following publications:

Bloomberg Law (12/2, Clason, Belloni, Subscription Publication, 4K)

Skilled Nursing News (12/2, Mullaney)

Park Place Live (12/2, Connole)

FierceHealthcare (12/2, Muoio, 150K)

Washington Examiner (12/2, Etzel, 888K).