Best Nursing Homes Ratings Include New Safety Measures: U.S. News

ACROSS AMERICA — U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-23 Best Nursing Homes ratings released Tuesday can help older Americans and their families sort out issues such as weekend staffing, infections that can lead to hospitalization and other problems before deciding on a facility.

California led all states, with 206 nursing homes ranked as high performing in short-term care and 148 in long-term care. Florida, Pennsylvania and Texas also led other states with the highest number of high-performing ratings.

About 1.1 million people a year over age 85 live in nursing homes, known by a variety of names that include skilled nursing facilities and post- and sub-acute care facilities. U.S. News said its rankings of 1,500 nursing homes nationwide are intended to guide families in helping to find a nursing home that excels in the type of care they need.

This is the first time in the 13 years U.S. News has been compiling the ratings that infection rates and the consistency of weekend nursing staffing were included in the quality of care issues people should consider before deciding on a nursing home.

The performance ratings are based on data retrieved from reports nursing homes are required to submit to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid data. Specifically:

• The ratings for both short-and long-term care take into account the consistency of registered nurse staffing, the use of antipsychotic drugs, and success in preventing emergency room and hospital visits.
• The long-term care rating also includes measures of whether a nursing home changed ownership and how well they were staffed on weekends.
• The short-term rehabilitation rating also includes measures of a nursing home’s success in preventing falls, preventing serious infections and making sure residents are able to return home.

More about the methodology is found on the U.S. News website.