In a May 20, 2020 letter to Congress, specifically to Senator Ron Wyden, the ranking member of the Finance Committee, the Government Accountability Office responded to a request “to examine CMS’s oversight of infection prevention and control protocols and the adequacy of emergency preparedness standards for emerging infectious diseases in … Read More
FDA, CMS, CDC and OIG COVID-19 updates for 1st 2 weeks of June 2020
CDC updated the following COVID-19 guidance during the 1st two (2) weeks of June: Using Telehealth to Expand Access to Essential Health Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic Updated Clinical Questions about COVID-19: Questions and Answers NHSN LTCF Guide to Using the COVID-19 Module The OIG (Office of Inspector General) posted … Read More
[On-demand training] Cohorting: Effective management of residents and staff
If you missed the June 11, 2020 third session of the National Nursing Home Training series, the recording and presentation slides are now available. This session is 58 minutes and 15 seconds in length and provided great information on cohorting residents and staff – both necessary to contain COVID-19 in … Read More
PDPM Boosts Medicare Rate 9% Early in COVID-19 Crisis: ‘RUGS-IV Would Have Been a Fiscal Disaster’
Skilled nursing facilities received a 9% Medicare reimbursement boost during the early days of the COVID-19 crisis under the new Patient-Driven Patient Model, a new analysis has determined — providing a crucial fiscal lifeline that may not have existed under the structure that PDPM replaced. “RUG-IV would have been a … Read More
Posting of nursing home inspections
On June 4, 2020, CMS posted QSO-20-32. Read my blog on that notification here. The subject matter of that QSO is the Release of COVID-19 Nursing Home Data. Later that same day, another QSO was posted: QSO 20-33-NH … Posting of Nursing Home Inspections. This seems to be the difference between … Read More