Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services Introduce the Nursing Home 5 Star Rating

The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) created a Five-Star Quality Rating System to rate all nursing homes in the country. Ratings for all nursing homes in the country can be found at www.medicare.gov (click on Nursing Home Compare).  When the system was introduced in December, 2008 it got mixed reviews from both providers and consumers. Providers complained, especially when they received a one or two star rating, that the system was not fair.  Consumers, while welcoming the system, urged caution. For example, The National Senior Citizens Law Center recommends consumers use the new rating system with caution and only as an aid while also pursuing other information and strategies. "Consumers need to understand that the five-star system is a beginning, not an end," Eric Carlson, director of the Long-Term Care Project of the National Senior Citizens Law Center, stated in a release."A nursing home's quality can shift from month to month, so consumers have to be savvy in asking the right questions and understanding the responsibilities of nursing homes under the federal Nursing Home Reform Law," Carlson said. 

Click below to find out how New York State nursing homes are faring under this system.

FEDERAL FIVE STAR RATINGS: NURSING HOMES IN NEW YORK STATE

FEDERAL FIVE STAFEDERAL FIVE STAR RATINGS: NURSING HOMES IN NEW YORK STR RATINGS: NURSING HOMES IN NEW YORK STATE1