All activities and plans for utilizing CMP funds must be approved in advance by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). As of January 1, 2026, the following activities have been approved by CMS.
2026 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| AGE-u-cate Training Institute – Dementia Live: A Foundational Experiential Education Took Leading to Competent and Empathetic Care Partners for Persons Living with Dementia | $119,726.13 |
Project Overview: Dementia Live draws from the groundbreaking “person-first” approach developed by psychologist Dr. Thomas Kitwood, who identified key psychological needs of individuals living with dementia; Comfort, Identity, Occupation, Inclusion, Attachment, and Love. This project aims to improve the quality of care for long-stay nursing home residents who are living with dementia. This will be achieved with Dementia Live, an experiential education program that simulates cognitive and sensory impairments, giving participants a real-life in-their shoes experience of what it feels like to live with dementia. Dementia Live develops competent and empathetic care partners to improve their actions of care. Nursing home staff will be guided through Dementia Live by facility-appointed coaches who complete a 6-hour online training program that equips them as an authorized Dementia Live coach. Dementia Live goes beyond the customary definition of "Dementia Training" in that it creates an experience that allows caregivers to feel what it is like to live with cognitive and sensory changes. This empathy cultivating program is fundamental to inspiring change in attitudes and actions of care. Through Dementia Live, participants are empowered with new tools for improved communication skills and care practices that can be implemented as they go about their work in the nursing home. Improved communication skills will help to decrease resident stress reactions that arise from dementia and related conditions and will help improve well-being.
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| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Ageless Innovation - Furry Friends Project | $483,654.26 |
Project Overview: The Furry Friends Project is a one-year, evidence-based initiative designed to improve the quality of life of skilled nursing facility residents living with dementia through the use of Joy for All® Robotic Companion Pets. The project provides a person-centered, non-pharmacological intervention that promotes comfort, meaningful engagement, emotional well-being, and social connection while reducing feelings of loneliness and depressive symptoms. Unlike live animal therapy, robotic companion pets offer many of the same therapeutic benefits without concerns related to infection control, allergies, safety, or ongoing animal care, making them well suited for routine use in skilled nursing settings. Participating facilities will receive comprehensive implementation support, including staff training, on-demand educational resources, quarterly peer learning sessions, and ongoing technical assistance to ensure consistent and sustainable use of the intervention. By integrating robotic companion pets into everyday care, the Furry Friends Project empowers caregivers with an effective, evidence-based tool that enhances person-centered dementia care and supports improved resident outcomes.
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| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Long-Term Care Consultants, LLC — SNF Clinic | $846,000.00 |
Project Overview: This project is a 36-month quality improvement initiative designed to enhance the quality of care in participating nursing facilities by improving staff training, strengthening clinical competencies, and supporting ongoing performance monitoring. It focuses on using CMS Quality Measures (QMs) as the primary indicator of resident care outcomes, with baseline performance established at the start of the Project and progress evaluated on a quarterly basis. LTCC will continuously track each facility’s QM performance, compare results to baseline benchmarks, and report outcomes to the state agency throughout the duration of the Project. The project is implemented through SNFClinic, an online education and operations platform that delivers clinical training modules, continuing education units (CEUs), onboarding programs, policy and procedure management tools, and quality assurance resources. Facilities use the system to standardize staff education, improve compliance, and streamline training delivery across departments. By reducing reliance on in-person in-service training and improving access to consistent education, the Project supports both improved resident care and greater operational efficiency.
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| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Namaste New York LLC, DBA: Golden Years — Strength & Mindfulness Training Program | $673,200.00 |
Project Overview: The Golden Years personalized fitness & wellness program is a web-based platform created by Golden to improve quality of life for nursing home residents through daily movement, mindfulness, and social engagement. It is built around Golden’s Four Pillars of Wellness Movement, Stillness, Connection, and Nourishment and offers live-streamed daily classes along with a 24/7 on-demand library featuring chair-based yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi, and meditation. The program is designed to address common challenges in long-term care such as social isolation, reduced physical activity, and high fall risk. Through a 2025 CMS CMP grant in North Carolina, it is being implemented across up to 38 nursing homes, with early outcomes showing improved resident satisfaction and significant reductions in both falls and fall severity. It also includes staff training, ongoing support, and data tracking using resident surveys and MDS fall assessments to measure impact. The overall goal is to improve residents’ quality of life while increasing mobility, independence, and safe daily engagement in care facilities.
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2025 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| AGE-u-cate Training Institute – Dementia Live: A Foundational Experiential Education Took Leading to Competent and Empathetic Care Partners for Persons Living with Dementia | $191,928.73 |
Project Overview: Dementia Live draws from the groundbreaking “person-first” approach developed by psychologist Dr. Thomas Kitwood, who identified key psychological needs of individuals living with dementia; Comfort, Identity, Occupation, Inclusion, Attachment, and Love. This project aims to improve the quality of care for long-stay nursing home residents who are living with dementia. This will be achieved with Dementia Live, an experiential education program that simulates cognitive and sensory impairments, giving participants a real-life in-their shoes experience of what it feels like to live with dementia. Dementia Live develops competent and empathetic care partners to improve their actions of care. Nursing home staff will be guided through Dementia Live by facility-appointed coaches who complete a 6-hour online training program that equips them as an authorized Dementia Live coach. Dementia Live goes beyond the customary definition of "Dementia Training" in that it creates an experience that allows caregivers to feel what it is like to live with cognitive and sensory changes. This empathy cultivating program is fundamental to inspiring change in attitudes and actions of care. Through Dementia Live, participants are empowered with new tools for improved communication skills and care practices that can be implemented as they go about their work in the nursing home. Improved communication skills will help to decrease resident stress reactions that arise from dementia and related conditions and will help improve well-being.
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2022 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Fulton County Medical Center – Resident Engagement and Connectivity Program | $56,931 |
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Resident Engagement and Connectivity Program’s purpose is to enhance the quality of life of the residents in the nursing facility by utilizing assistive technology to expand the residents’ activity involvement and connectivity with family. The program centers around technology assisted resident engagement and connectivity tools. The tools consist of both mobile and wall mounted devices that can be utilized in one-on-one settings or in a group session. The desired outcome includes a decreased use of psychotropic medication and decrease in the instance of depression among the resident population. The devices offer a range of content that promote wellness and engagement by using videos, games, puzzles, travel experiences, and other activities. | |
2020 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Pennsylvania Department of Health – Comprehensive Respiratory Program for PA Skilled Nursing Facilities | $915,200.00 |
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The projects described will directly benefit large numbers of nursing home residents and their family members across the Commonwealth of PA by enhancing comprehensive respiratory protection and infection prevention education and process improvements for SNF healthcare providers across the Commonwealth. Section one of the Respiratory Protection Program will equip healthcare personnel in PA's SNFs with evidenced-based infection prevention and control practices regarding transmission-based precautions, specific to airborne and droplet precautions and general hygiene etiquette and aid them in establishing their own facility-based program based on best practice recommendations. Section 2 (The Advanced Infection Prevention and Control Training and Sustainability Program)-will directly benefit PA state SNF residents by improving their quality of care and quality of life through protection from harm relating to potentially avoidable infections. The Advanced Infection Prevention and Control Training and Sustainability Program -will assist staff in learning basic and more advanced infection prevention and control strategies to protect the residents from communicable diseases, including COVID-19, multi drug-resistant organisms (MDROs), and other emerging viral and bacterial infections. Training of multiple staff from a single facility will create staffing redundancy and ensure the residents can be kept safe when primary staff members are on leave or suddenly depart, or when a large outbreak occurs requiring the assistance from multiple staff members | |
2018-2019 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Assurant Learning & Performance Solutions – Mental Health First Aid: Expanding PA Nursing Home Capacities | $78,962.00 |
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The project aims to expand behavioral healthcare capacity for PA nursing home staff and provide actionable tools to support PA nursing homes in implementing behavioral healthcare. The applicant will offer Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training, created, and administered by the National Council on Behavioral Health (NCBH) to staff from 180 nursing homes. Six sessions of the training (one in each distric | |
| Rolling Meadows – Bridging the Gap | $27,337.00 |
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The project seeks to enhance existing palliative care efforts. Grant funds would be used to underwrite the cost of education and training for staff, as well as education for residents and their families, in palliative care initiatives, disease-state management protocols, and techniques which would improve the quality of life for the residents. The goal is to become a Center of Excellence in Palliative Care and have residents' function at a higher level of independence and improve their quality of life during their stay. The project was able to get more staff educated in September 2021 (three staff) and in October 2021 (four staff) through the STAR Program. We have put a hold on additional STAR classes in early 2022 as we work through staffing issues. Currently, we have an anticipated start time of March 1, 2022. | |
| Baptist Homes Society – Palliative Care Center of Excellence Initiative | $36,000.00 |
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The applicant aims to implement the individualized music program, Music and Memory to improve nursing home residents' quality of life through "five action steps": (1) organizing a motivated team of staff and families; (2) prepare by setting; (3) begin pilot by conducting assessments to identify music preferences, creating play lists, reviewing progress; (4) launch the program throughout the organization; and (5) support the team, work with volunteers, fundraise, build up community connections, and learn and enhance the program. Ongoing education will be provided to staff throughout the life of the project. This project has experienced delays created by the COVID-19 pandemic. | |
| Londonderry Village – Ride & Glide Wellness | $57,310.00 |
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The applicant aims to create a "Ride & Glide for Wellness" program that will combine piloted trishaw bike rides and wheelchair accessible swings to incentivize their residents, especially those living with dementia, to enjoy outdoor activities. The applicant expects these new activities to help decrease feelings of isolation and boredom among their residents. This project has been put on hold due to COVID-19 pandemic. | |
2017-2018 LTC Grant Award Recipients
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rolling Meadows – Bridging the Gap | $27,337.00 |
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The project will utilize the "It's Never 2 Late" (iN2L) engagement system to improve the quality of life of residents, including those living with dementia/memory loss, through experiencing and learning new life skills. This person-centered technology allows residents, families, and caregivers to become more engaged in areas related to therapy, activities, cognitive fitness, socialization, and spiritual life. Enhanced, dignified mind-stimulating activities, improving hand-eye coordination, exploring the internet, and connecting with family via Skype are some examples of the way the system is used. | |