(WASHINGTON) – Senator Kevin Cramer says North Dakota nursing home facilities are feeling the pressure on the heels of a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services minimum staffing rule. In comments made on the Senate floor earlier today, Cramer said facilities are ‘already woefully understaffed because of a lack of workforce.’ He says the ‘most burdensome’ requirement is the requirement to have a Registered Nurse on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Currently, the requirement is eight hours a day, seven days a week. Cramer told his Senate colleagues that ‘less than a quarter’ of North Dakota facilities meet the requirements. In rural communities, 14 percent will be able to meet the mandate.
