What’s happening: On September 15, the members of the new Nursing Home Oversight and Accountability Advisory Board met for the first time to provide advice and information to Gov. Glenn Youngkin under Executive Order 52.

• VHCA-VCAL issued a media statement in advance of the meeting imploring the Commonwealth to fix the survey oversight process. The statement stressed that the Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC) is struggling to meet federal regulatory requirements for survey timelines and that the steps in EO 52 are not enough to address the immediate needs of nursing homes to have timely and collaborative engagement with VDH OLC.

Voices for the profession: The 20 member board includes four VHCA-VCAL members who spoke up for providers.

• Amanda Gannon, Regional Administrator, Green Tree Healthcare, urged caution against broad generalizations about nursing homes, expressing pride in the high-quality care many providers deliver in Virginia.
• Todd Barnes, NHA, MED, Administrator, Department of Veterans Services, echoed the comments made by Gannon and discussed ways to boost the long term care administrator workforce.
• Candace Gilliam, LPN, August Healthcare, offered her perspective as a frontline provider.
• Jonathan Cook, President and CEO, LifeSpire of Virginia Senior Living Communities offered suggestions on ways the administration could better address complaints about nursing homes.

What was said: The board meeting was led by Secretary of Health and Human Resources Janet Kelly who emphasized the Youngkin Administration’s commitment to nursing home residents and its interest in addressing the record number of complaints about nursing home care in Virginia.

• VDH Chief Operating Officer Christopher Lindsay gave a presentation outlining the steps VDH is taking to increase recruitment and retention in OLC.
• The Long-Term Care Ombudsman Joani Latimer provided a presentation on the ombudsman program and its role in helping nursing home residents.
• Other members of the advisory board raised issues related to star ratings, for-profit versus not-for-profit providers, facility ownership, complaint intake, the use of local emergency services, and family perspectives.

Following the meeting, VHCA-VCAL has had contact with the Youngkin administration officials on our specific concerns about survey timelines and survey timeliness.

• VHCA-VCAL will be meeting with OLC leadership and CMS officials in separate meetings to continue to advocate for immediate action to address the systemic problems and will continue to press for resolution until the survey process is operating in a more collaborative and efficient manner.
• Additionally, AHCA is actively engaged on the issue as it relates to CMS.

For context: As specified in EO 52, the advisory board shall advise the Commissioner on quality oversight initiatives that elevate standards across nursing homes and offer recommendations on policies and practices that improve resident well-being and quality of care.

• The board will hold additional meetings before providing a report on their findings to Gov. Youngkin in November.

Read the coverage:

• Va. nursing home accountability board holds first meeting (wtkr.com, September 16, 2025)