Hospice & Home Health News 2026August28

UPDATE: Proposed Rule Rolling Back Community Reinvestment Act Obligations Published. As we reported last week, a multi-agency proposed rule seeks to roll back the Community Reinvestment Act and could weaken investment in affordable housing and community development. This proposed rule has now been published in the Federal Register on August 12 kicking off a 60-day comment period that will end on October 13, 2026. The full article can be read here . Here is your weekly Affordable Housing Weekly Recap.

State Auditor Mike Foley Report on HCBS:

Federal Judge Vacates State Department Pause on Immigrant Visa Processing for 75 Countries. A federal judge has struck down the State Department policy that paused immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries while the Department reassessed "public charge" standards. The ruling, issued August 21 out of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, found that the policy exceeded the State Department's statutory authority and prevented consular officers from making individualized visa determinations required under federal immigration law. As a result, immigrant visa applications from the affected countries may resume processing under normal procedures, with eligibility assessed on a case-by-case basis rather than through a blanket nationality-based restriction. Of note- public charge remains a valid ground of inadmissibility; it just has to be assessed on the individual applicant's circumstances rather than nationality. While the court's decision removes the legal basis for the pause, the practical impact on processing times will depend on how quickly and fully the State Department implements the ruling and resumes adjudication of affected cases. This decision is potentially relevant to LeadingAge members who recruit internationally educated nurses through the EB-3 process. Temporary Protected Status for El Salvado Ends September 9, 2026: Employment authorization for eligible Salvadoran TPS holders will end September 9th per USCIS, absent new litigation or a redesignation. USCIS has automatically extended certain expired TPS-based employment authorization documents through that date and issued related Form I-9 records, and prepare for timely reverification and potential workforce disruptions. For details see the full article here . New Guidance from IRS on No Tax on Overtime. Last week, the Internal revenue Service issued updated FAQs on the No Tax on Overtime provision under HR 1, which added a new tax deduction for qualified overtime compensation. The deduction allows individuals to deduct up to $12,500 of qualified overtime pay annually ($25,000 in the case of a joint return) but may be reduced if a taxpayer's modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $150,000 ($300,000 for joint filers). Developed in coordination with the Department of Labor and Office of Personnel Management, the updated FAQs replace previous FAQs issued in January 2026 and provide more extensive guidance on overtime eligibility and exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act, reporting qualified overtime compensation, and federal income tax withholdings from wages. The FAQs also include a guidance for employers on calculating qualified overtime compensation to be paid to an employee for purposes of the deduction. This includes instructions for alternative methods of computation are used to compute overtime, which may apply to employees of certain residential care facilities. Here is your weekly Workforce Weekly Recap

COVID “Up to Date” Definition Will Not Change

There are no new Assisted Living updates to share this week. Please check back next week for the latest news and information. Here is your Life Plan Community Weekly Recap .

Developments in Nursing Home Staffing Campaign The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a notice in the Federal Register on August 19 providing notice of a new system of records. The system of records is related to the nurse incentive program, titled “Nurses for Nursing Homes Program (NNHP)”, in the Nursing Home Staffing Campaign and could be a signal that the program is moving forward. In February 2026, CMS reopened the Notice of Funding Opportunity that allowed nursing schools, nursing associations, and other qualified entities to apply to act as Financial Incentive Administrators for the program, helping to disburse funds to program-participating nurses working in eligible nursing homes. At that time, CMS expected to select Financial Incentive Administrators in summer 2026 who would then begin establishing the infrastructure for administering financial incentives. The Federal Register notice on August 19 appears to be relevant to this process and may indicate that CMS is on track with the program timeline. The new system of records establishes the infrastructure by which CMS will collect and track records of individuals who apply for, participate in, or otherwise support the Nurses for Nursing Homes Program. Records will include information such as identity, training and education, employment, and financial information of nurse applicants. Information will be provided and/or verified by nurse applicants, National Government Services, Internal Revenue Service and Department of the Treasury, and others as well as participating nursing homes. CMS has still not released detailed information on how nursing homes will be selected or deemed eligible for participation in the program, though it appears that participation will be limited to nursing homes in rural and underserved areas. Despite a clear need for further information from CMS on details of the program and program implementation, LeadingAge does view this development as a positive step forward for this program that will help to recruit new nurses into the field of nursing homes and long-term care. Medicare Part A Cost Report Overpayment Default Recoupment Date Extended The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in an August 7 MLNMatters newsletter that they are extending the Healthcare Integrated General Ledger Accounting System default recoupment date for Past A cost report overpayments from 16 to 41 calendar days after the demand date. This change will take effect January 4, 2027 and affects home health agencies, hospices, and skilled nursing facilities, among other providers billing Medicare Part A. CMS states that this change aligns with default recoupment dates for Medicare Part B overpayments. For Part A cost report overpayments that are not paid in full by day 40, recoupment will begin on day 41 unless the overpayment falls into an excluded category. For more information, refer to MM14457 or contact your Medicare Administrative Contractor. Nursing Home Risk-Based Survey Resources Now Available The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released survey resources on August 13 for the new Risk-Based Survey that will be rolling out for nursing homes nationwide beginning in September. Available on the Nursing Homes page of the CMS website in the Downloads section, the survey resources include the typically-available resources used by state survey agencies during standard recertification surveys, adapted for use on the Risk-Based Survey. Training videos will also be available on the Quality, Safety and Education Portal (QSEP) in the future but are not available yet. The Risk-Based Survey is an exciting step forward in survey and certification reform and we appreciate CMS continuing to make survey resources publicly available. Reviewing these resources will help nursing homes know what to expect from surveys utilizing this new survey model. Recall, however, that CMS estimates approximately 12% of nursing homes will qualify for a Risk-Based Survey and not all qualified nursing homes will receive this survey model. For this reason, nursing homes should continue to refer to the standard recertification survey resources and the State Operations Manual ( Chapter 7 and Appendix PP ) to assist with compliance and survey preparation activities.

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Senators Challenge CMS Voting Guidance for Nursing Homes.

New MDS Training from CMS: Section K Assessment and Coding Essentials. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is offering a web-based training that provides an overview of Section K of the Minimum Data Set (MDS). The course reviews the purpose, assessment steps, coding instructions, coding tips, key definitions, and calculation methods for accurately assessing and coding Section K items. This training can be accessed through the SNF QRP Training webpage.