CMS has launched a $275 million recruitment and retention initiative to bring more nurses into nursing homes.
In the Nurses for Nursing Homes initiative, nursing students and licensed nurses can qualify for up to $40,000 in student loan repayment, a $10,000 stipend or both in exchange for a three-year commitment to work in a rural nursing home, according to an Oct. 23 news release shared with Becker’s. The program is expected to support more than 4,000 nurses nationwide.
The program is available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. All rural nursing facilities, plus additional facilities in higher-labor shortage areas are eligible. The agency is working with workforce partners to help recruit eligible nurses and connect them with opportunities at long-term care facilities.
CMS has committed to providing $100 million, while states have committed to at least $175 million. The program is funded through civil monetary penalties collected by CMS and states from nursing homes.
The initiative opens Oct. 26, and there is a 90-day exception window for nurses who started at an eligible nursing home between July 28 and Oct. 25.
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