WASHINGTON — The federal government has proposed new staffing rules for nursing homes — including requiring registered nurses to be on site 24 hours a day — a proposal that has drawn the support of Pennsylvania’s two U.S. senators but opposition from the state’s nursing home industry.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid proposed in September to establish minimum standards for nursing care, including more than a half-hour of care from a registered nurse and almost 2 1/2 hours from a nurse aide every day.

While U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman, D-Pa., endorsed the proposal, more than two dozen other senators — both Democrats and Republicans — said it would hurt facilities in rural areas. And Pennsylvania’s nursing home association said the proposed rule would exacerbate a shortage of trained health care workers.

The rules would affect nursing homes that participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, which serve more than 1.2 million residents nationally. In Pennsylvania, the state’s nursing homes have about 65,600 residents, with Medicaid covering the care for around 44,000 of them.