News

As the January 30 funding deadline for Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations nears, we are monitoring federal agency activities and potential impact on providers to help members navigate a government shutdown, should one come to pass.

On January 23, 2026, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) posted a press release directing federally-assisted housing providers to immediately “audit” tenant eligibility based on immigration status.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has published a final rule updating its civil monetary penalty (CMP) amounts to reflect inflation, under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015. This change ensures that penalties retain their deterrent effect by adjusting them annually based on changes in the Consumer Price Index.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Project Firstline offered a webinar on Tuesday focused on preventing and responding to respiratory infections and outbreaks in long-term care. During the webinar they covered approaches to recognizing illness early, testing, treatment, vaccination, and infection prevention and control (IPC).

Yesterday, Jan. 14, the U.S. State Department announced a pause on immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries, a change that may affect some employment-based green card cases used by long-term care providers to recruit international health care professionals. The pause is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 21.

CMS has recently moved nursing home survey and certification data into its new cloud-based system, iQIES (Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System). While this modernization is intended to improve data quality and reliability, the transition has resulted in data discrepancies that may be visible on Nursing Home Care Compare.

The National Association of Long-Term Care Boards (NAB) has launched the 2025-26 Professional Practice Analysis (PPA) survey. A PPA, sometimes referred to as a Job Analysis, is the practice of gathering and analyzing details about a particular job, such as responsibilities, day-to-day duties, qualifications, etc.

Members who provide HUD subsidized housing may have received a letter dated November 25, 2025 from HUD Secretary E. Scott Turner addressing the current administration’s guidance related to criminal background screenings for prospective tenants.

The Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act has been reintroduced – A federal bill that proposes to recapture up to 40,000 previously authorized but unused immigrant visas—25,000 for nurses and 15,000 for physicians.

LeadingAge Minnesota business partner CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA) recently released their 40^th Annual SNF Cost Comparison and Industry Trends Report. This year's report is centered on the importance of understanding the reimbursement landscape, how quality drives performance, and enhancing business operations and acumen.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) recently released a practical, evidence-based toolkit designed specifically for long‐term care organizations to reduce the risk of skin compromise and the spread of multidrug‐resistant organisms (MDROs). Because residents live in the same place where they receive care, the environment and resident interactions present unique prevention challenges.

The latest Nurse Professional Liability Claim Report: 5th Edition, released by CNA and the Nurses Service Organization (NSO), reveals a growing concern for those working in our settings. Over the past five years, nearly half of all closed nurse malpractice claims have involved professionals working in long-term care, assisted living, or home health settings.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has begun issuing the calendar year 2025 Resident Services Coordinator (RSC) grant award notices to renew grants for the current year.

The Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act has been reintroduced – a federal bill that proposes to recapture up to 40,000 previously authorized but unused immigrant visas—25,000 for nurses and 15,000 for physicians.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced updated recommendations for flu vaccination for the 2025–2026 flu season. On August 28, 2025, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) approved the guidance that will shape flu prevention efforts nationwide.

LeadingAge learned this week of a move within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to execute on President Trump’s March 1 English-as-America’s-official-language Executive Order (EO) by replacing the agency’s Limited English Proficiency (LEP) policy with an English-only policy.

Memo

In a memo to HUD employees, HUD deputy secretary Andrew D. Hughes stated that the EO will “enhance social and economic integration,” and reports that the agency will no longer have contracts for translation services for documents or communications, and all paper and online materials in languages other than English would be removed. HUD Secretary Scott Turner stated on Fox News, “… HUD will solely use English for all Departmental business and services. We are one people, united, and we will speak with one voice and one language to deliver on our mission.”

Previously, HUD had a practice of translating materials like resident brochures, documents, and forms into nearly 20 languages.

LeadingAge National confirmed the announcement with HUD leadership, who said that the change would take effect “immediately.” However, next steps and timelines for removing materials and ending contracts is currently unclear, and as of August 20, several translated materials are still available online through HUD’s LEP webpage.

LeadingAge National is working to save translated materials that housing providers may need in order to serve households with diverse LEP needs. Providers are encouraged to consider doing the same, particularly for documents that you use frequently for the population you serve.

If you are an operator of a HUD community, you are invited to join our upcoming quarterly networking group. Get together with other operators to network, share best practices, and get the latest updates related to HUD.

Each month, Minnesota Housing posts an update for HUD providers called MOR Hot Topics. This publication recaps top items they’ve been finding in Management Occupancy Reviews (MOR) and other relevant updates for providers of HUD housing. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Division of Nursing Homes has resumed regular calls with LeadingAge and other national stakeholder associations.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has weighed in on questions from LeadingAge National about how housing providers should handle retroactive payments resulting from the Social Security Fairness Act (SSFA).