Sept. 27th COVID-19 Update
New updates pertaining to the COVID-19 emergency continue to be announced by both the state and federal government on a regular basis. The latest developments for providers of long-term/post-acute care (LTPAC) and senior services are outlined below.
As a reminder, LeadingAge NY continues to convene weekly webinars on Mondays at 11 a.m. to address emerging questions on COVID-19. Please note that due to Rosh Hashanah, this week’s update will be held on Wed., Sept. 28th at 11 a.m. If you have any questions that you would like LeadingAge NY staff to address or would like the access information, please contact Jeff Diamond.
Cross-Sector Updates
CDC Updates COVID-19 Recommendations for Health Care Settings
On Sept. 23rd, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued updates to its COVID-19 infection prevention guidance for health care personnel and guidance for managing exposed and infected health care personnel. It also retired its nursing home-specific infection prevention guidance and incorporated guidance for nursing homes into the more general guidance. In addition, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updated its nursing home visitation guidance, QSO 20-39-NH, and its testing guidance, QSO 20-38-NH, to align with the CDC guidance. Click here for more information.
Pencils Down on PRF Reporting
We hope that all members who received federal Provider Relief Funding (PRF) distributions totaling more than $10,000 during the period Jan. 1, 2021 through June 30, 2021 have submitted or are close to completing their reports on the use of the funds. This Friday, Sept. 30th, is the deadline. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) website contains many reporting resources, including examples and worksheets. Those uncertain when they may have received a distribution can verify that information by calling the Provider Support Line at 866-569-3522 (9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday).
Nursing Home Updates
NHSN Updates Definitions for Reporting Purposes
A reminder to members that starting this week (i.e., Sept. 26th forward), nursing homes should use the new definition of “up-to-date,” which is based on the current CDC bivalent vaccination guidance, when reporting resident and staff vaccination status to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). Although the CDC definition change was made earlier in the month, to ensure reporting comparability, NHSN reporting definitions were not changed until this week, the start of a new reporting quarter. A document with the definitions is available here. The slides from a CDC webinar regarding the change can be accessed here, and the slides from a presentation on updates made to the person-level vaccination form aimed at making this reporting easier are here.