Lawsuit Dismissal Permanently Prevents Minimum Staffing Regulations
Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) withdrew its appeal of the District Court decision in AHCA v. Kennedy. Earlier this year, a District Court in the Northern District of Texas vacated the federal minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes issued by the Biden Administration, including the 24/7 RN requirement and a minimum number of hours per resident per day. The DOJ filed an appeal in June – but yesterday filed an opposed motion to drop the appeal. And as of today, the lawsuit has officially been dismissed.
The DOJ also filed paperwork to withdraw its appeal in State of Kansas v. Kennedy. A month after the AHCA case was filed, this similar lawsuit to challenge the rule was filed in Iowa by 20 state attorneys general. The Iowa District Court issued a similar finding to vacate the regulation.
WHAT THIS MEANS
The DOJ’s actions mean the Court rulings will stand. The statute does not permit CMS to set staffing standards beyond what Congress enacted. This will prevent future administrations from issuing such a regulation later.
In addition to the Court decision, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) passed this summer includes a 10-year moratorium on implementing the staffing standards in the rule. The Trump Administration has signaled its intention to repeal the regulations through an interim final rule (IFR), currently at the Office of Management and Budget for review.
It’s important to note that the Court ruling and OBBBA do not impact the facility assessment portion of the rule. AHCA will continue to monitor for the release of the IFR to identify the full impact.
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