October 19 2021 – As reported today, Agency for Health Care Administration (Agency) announced it has received perfect scores from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) State Performance Standards System (SPSS) for federal fiscal year 2019.
“Since the beginning of his administration, Governor DeSantis has prioritized the well-being of our most vulnerable citizens,” said Agency Secretary Simone Marstiller. “I am proud of our Agency staff who have consistently, even throughout the public health emergency, ensured that providers in our state delivered the highest level of care at all times. We will continue to work together with Florida’s health care providers to offer Floridians the opportunity to receive high-quality care in safe environments.”
Each federal fiscal year, CMS conducts official assessments of each state’s performance relative to measures included in the SPSS program. As does the Agency, CMS looks to ensure that the care provided across provider types is the highest quality for all patients and residents. As stated in CMS memo 21-08-ALL, Florida met ALL performance measures for federal fiscal year 2019. Additionally, no other large nursing home state can claim the same level of exceptional performance across all criteria. With 700 nursing homes, Florida is fifth in the number of nursing homes, behind Texas (1194), California (1182), Ohio (942) and Illinois (701).
While measures were calculated, they were not scored for federal fiscal year 2020. The Agency saw continued success in federal fiscal year 2020, completing surveys on 99.6% of all nursing homes.
“As a former surveyor, I know the incredibly hard work it takes to achieve results like these,” said Agency Deputy Secretary of Health Quality Assurance Kimberly Smoak. “I am proud of our staff and their continued dedication to promoting safe, patient-centered environments across the state. The Agency’s high scores on regulating Florida’s nursing homes shows our commitment long before the pandemic, and of course during the pandemic, to protect Florida’s most vulnerable citizens.”
The Agency for Health Care Administration is committed to better health care for all Floridians. The Agency administers Florida’s Medicaid program, licenses and regulates more than 48,000 health care facilities and 47 health plans, and publishes health care data and statistics at www.FloridaHealthFinder.gov. Additional information about Agency initiatives is available via Facebook (AHCAFlorida) and Twitter (@AHCA_FL).
