Workforce Ready Meets CMS Staffing Data Submission PBJ Requirements
Beginning July 1, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) will require nursing homes to report their staffing levels as part of the Affordable Care Act. This requirement standardizes the collection of specific information related to agency, contract and direct care staff, facility census data, and more. This will enable providers to focus on the costs of labor – the largest operating expense of long-term care facilities – as well as labor-related functions like attendance, scheduling, overtime, and more.
CMS has developed a system for facilities to submit staffing and census information –Payroll-Based Journal (PBJ). This system will allow staffing and census information to be collected on a regular and more frequent basis than currently collected. It will also be auditable to ensure accuracy. All long term care facilities will have access to this system at no cost to facilities.
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About CMS and Payroll-based Journal
CMS has long identified staffing as one of the vital components of a nursing home’s ability to provide quality care. Over time, CMS has utilized staffing data for a myriad of purposes in an effort to more accurately and effectively gauge its impact on quality of care in nursing homes. We also post staffing information on the CMS Nursing Home Compare website, and it is used in the Nursing Home Five Star Quality Rating System to help consumers understand the level and differences of staffing in nursing homes.
Section 6106 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires facilities to electronically submit direct care staffing information (including agency and contract staff) based on payroll and other auditable data. The data, when combined with census information, can then be used to not only report on the level of staff in each nursing home, but also to report on employee turnover and tenure, which can impact the quality of care delivered.
Therefore, CMS has developed a system for facilities to submit staffing and census information – Payroll-Based Journal (PBJ). This system will allow staffing and census information to be collected on a regular and more frequent basis than currently collected. It will also be auditable to ensure accuracy. All long term care facilities will have access to this system at no cost to facilities.
CMS intends to collect staffing and census data through the PBJ system on a voluntary basis beginning on October 1, 2015, and on a mandatory basis beginning on July 1, 2016. Registration for voluntary submission will begin in August 2015, and CMS will communicate more information at that time. Training will also be provided on registration and for both voluntary and mandatory submissions.
Additional information on the requirements and system is posted at:
https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/NursingHomeQualityInits/Staffing-Data-Submission-PBJ.html