SHN will be observing Memorial Day on Monday, May 25, but will return Tuesday, May 26. In the meantime, we’d like to wish all SHN readers an enjoyable holiday weekend.

And, in case you missed them, here are the top headlines grabbing SHN readers’ attention this week:

4 Reasons Senior Living And ACOs Don’t Get Along — Senior living providers have expressed concerns about being able to join Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). Some say there is a “great divide” between the industry and those ACOs because there are no universal quality metrics in senior living; there’s a lack of education; there aren’t enough incentives for senior living providers; and alternative partnerships are easier.

How Five Star is Taking Senior Living Wellness to the Next Level — The fourth largest senior living provider has launched its Lifestyle 360 program, which will allow the provider to track residents’ participation in certain activities and measure that against the health outcomes they aim to achieve. The collected data could help position Five Star as a preferred provider down the road. 

Providers See ‘DIY’ Retirement Communities as Friends, Not Foes — A growing movement among U.S. seniors to create their own retirement communities might seem to be a threat for senior living providers, but forward-thinking operators could gain a competitive edge by finding ways to work with these groups of enterprising older adults.

Providers Weigh In On Tobacco, Booze in Senior Living — While the majority of providers say their communities are smoke-free, at the same time, many say their communities serve alcohol, noting the popularity of happy hour and other social events in a recent survey. 

Time to Re-evaluate Assisted Living as Leader in Long-Term Care — The impact of the Affordable Care Act on the health and long-term care system, combined with new expectations of the baby boom generation, is forcing the industry to step back and evaluate assisted living’s role as a leader in non-institutional long-term care, according to a recent report by The Center for Excellence in Assisted Living. 

Written by Emily Study