Hoeven: Trump Administration Repeals Unworkable Staffing Mandate, Provides Relief for Rural Long-Term Care Providers

Hoeven: Trump Administration Repeals Unworkable Staffing Mandate, Provides Relief for Rural Long-Term Care Providers

WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement after the Trump administration repealed a Biden-era rule imposing unworkable minimum staffing mandates on long-term care (LTC) facilities. Hoeven opposed the rule when it was first proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2023, having:

• Pressed the Biden administration to rescind the rule.
  • In a letter sent with a bipartisan group of his Senate colleagues, Hoeven stressed that the one-size-fits-all approach would force many rural LTC facilities to close their doors.
• Helped introduce a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution of disapproval, sponsored by Senator James Lankford (R-Okla.), to rescind the rule.
• Supported a 10-year moratorium on the CMS rule, which passed as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill.

"Our rural long-term care providers already face a range of challenges, and this staffing mandate from the Biden administration only added to their burden," said Hoeven. "This one-size-fits-all approach would have actually reduced access to long-term care in rural areas by forcing providers to shut down when they were unable to comply. That's why we worked to rescind the CMS rule and successfully passed a moratorium to keep it from going into effect. We appreciate the Trump administration for following through on our efforts and repealing this unworkable regulation."

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