Skilled Nursing Facility Cost Comparison Report: Occupancy is Down, Cash is Up

Emily Mongan at McKnight’s Long-Term Care News reports that CliftonLarsonAllen, a CPA Consulting Firm, released their Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Cost Comparison Report, which details dynamic trends in the long-term care (LTC) industry, ranging from occupancy levels to cash-on-hand to accountable care organizations and bundled payments. In particular, the report highlighted some major changes in SNFs across the country.

Overall, SNF occupancy rates decreased from 91.9% in 2010 to 90.4% in 2014, a major surprise considering the projected increase in LTC residents over the next 10 years. The report notes that this decrease in occupancy could be linked to shorter stays in SNFs, increased use of SNF alternatives such as home services, and possible changes in hospital referral patterns.

Most surprising, despite lower occupancy rates, the report found that SNF days cash-on-hand, or facility liquidity, increased from 36.2 days in 2010 to 45.7 days in 2014. This major increase is most likely due to a general increase in operating margins by SNFs, which might explain the contract to occupancy rates.

According to the report, in order to keep up with these trends in long-term care, it is necessary for SNFs to embrace change and focus on the next ten years, not just the next one. If you would like to know more about what you can do to solidify your facility’s position in the SNF industry, please view our services or contact us.

To view CliftonLarsonAllen’s full report, click here to download. And, to read the full article from McKnight's, click here.