Labor Costs and the Area Wage Index in Skilled Nursing Facilities

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About this project

Lead researcher: Kathleen Dalton, PhD
Project completed: February 2003

This project will examine regional patterns in Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) hourly wages, using data from Fiscal Year 1997 cost reports for all freestanding and hospital-based facilities. We will analyze wage differentials by community size and regional location with the objective of comparing these to the patterns found in inpatient hospital wages from the same areas in order to assess the impact of HCFA s use of a hospital wage index to adjust SNF payment rates.

Publications

• Rural-Urban Issues In The Wage Index Adjustment For Prospective Payment In Skilled Nursing Facilities (Brief Report)
  North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
  Date: 01/2004
  Hourly wage data from Medicare-participating nursing homes were used to examine urban/rural patterns in average hourly nursing home wages and wage variation within the statewide rural labor markets defined by CMS. The data were also used to examine the adequacy of the hospital wage index as an adjuster for skilled nursing facility rates.
• Rural-Urban Issues In The Wage Index Adjustment For Prospective Payment In Skilled Nursing Facilities (Full Report)
  North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
  Date: 11/2003
  Hourly wage data collected were used to examine urban/rural patterns in average hourly nursing home wages and pattern variation within the statewide rural labor markets. The data were also used to examine the adequacy of the hospital wage index as an adjuster for skilled nursing facility rates.