As Baby Boomers have aged into needing medical care beyond what can be provided at home, the long-term care market has both staggering opportunity to grow and daunting challenges to face. The CDC reported in 2016 that 65,500 long-term care facilities were serving about nine million patients across the country. According to Grandview Research, the market is valued at over $415 billion, with demand only rising.

But as health care attorneys, we’ve seen nursing homes placed in difficult positions and, frequently, in financial peril after failed attempts to collect on long-term care accounts. Residents with chronic care issues, lacking capacity to render their own payments, may have family members who are unwilling or unauthorized to access their finances. And even when residents qualify for Medicaid coverage, the Medicaid applications process often goes awry. Residents may even owe a balance after they die, with the next steps unclear.

In light of these pitfalls relating to collections, this blog series will advise our clients on regulatory compliance and best practices for maximizing collections on long-term care accounts, starting with application and admission. In our experience, securing the right information from the start serves our clients best in the long run.