FEDERAL NEWS

Medicare Sequester Bill Signed and CMS Releases MLN on Sequestration Suspension Continuation
Last Wednesday, President Biden signed the Medicare sequester bill which suspends the 2% Medicare reimbursement cut (“the sequester”) through the end of 2021. This applies to all Medicare billers, including home health, hospices, PACE organizations and NFs. Read more here. Providers do not need to take any action.

CDC Partner Webinar: When to Clean, When to Disinfect, and What Science Says about SARS-CoV-2 on Surfaces | April 19, 2021, 2:00 PM CDT
Dr. Cynthia Ogden will share updates on CDC’s COVID-19 response, including the latest scientific information and what everyone should know about protecting themselves and others. Dr. Vincent Hill will discuss how SARS-CoV-2 impacts cleaning and disinfecting surfaces.  Use this web-link to register for this event.

CDC Assisted Living Guidance Under Development
CDC is working on assisted living guidance, according to a call with LeadingAge National late last week.  No details or projected time of publication is available, yet.

Estimates of Excess Deaths Associated with Pandemic
CDC released an MMWR containing notes from the field with an update on excess deaths associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Estimates of excess deaths, defined as the number of persons who have died from all causes, above the expected number of deaths for a given place and time, can provide a comprehensive account of mortality likely related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including deaths that are both directly and indirectly associated with COVID-19. Since April 2020, CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has published weekly data on excess deaths associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. A previous report identified nearly 300,000 excess deaths during January 26 – October 3, 2020, with two thirds directly associated with COVID-19. Using more recent data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS), CDC estimated that 545,600–660,200 excess deaths occurred in the United States during January 26, 2020 – February 27, 2021.

LEADINGAGE KANSAS NEWS

Weekly Webinar Recording Available
Here is the recording from last Friday’s webinar. Here are the handouts.

Jump on each week for information and updates about the coronavirus, Fridays at 10 AM. Register here.

Please note: We are pausing our weekly webinars during our Virtual Spring Conference. We will resume again on May 7th.

Names are Rolling in Honoring the Individuals We Lost During the Pandemic
We are seeking the names of residents, staff and those you would like to recognize as loved ones that we lost this past year during the pandemic. We will be holding a moment of silence/prayer and honoring their lives during our upcoming Virtual Spring Conference on April 26th at 10:45 AM. Please send names to Dana Weaver at dana@leadingagekansas.org by Friday, April 23rd at 3 PM.

LEADINGAGE NATIONAL NEWS

New Insights and Tools from LeadingAge
LeadingAge staff experts are developing essential advocacy, guidance and tools, and curating the most relevant resources for aging services providers, including:

No Update Call on Wednesday, April 21st – It’s LeadingAge Virtual Lobby Day
Calls on Monday and Thursday at 2:30 PM CDT to feature new Johnson and Johnson information as it emerges from CDC, as well as a look at a county public health system that has figured out how to find and vaccinate homebound people and some new tools for infection control.On Monday, April 19th, Maureen Linehan from the King County (WA) Public Health Department will talk about how her agency geared up to find homebound older adults and got them vaccinated.  Callers from other locations will find ideas worth talking to their own public health departments about.  On Thursday, Lisa Thomson and Sue LaGrange from LeadingAge Partner Pathways Health will join us to talk about the new infection control toolkit.  The best practices learned during the pandemic will be applicable well beyond the nursing home setting.  If you haven’t registered for Update Calls and wish to, you can do so here.

Springtime Reunions & Gratitude: Communications Toolkit
As progress on vaccinations allows more in-person visitations, the news and social media are filled with stories of reunions. This is a perfect time for LeadingAge and our members to share positive stories of aging services. To help get our stories out, we have prepared a collection of customizable templates for your use.

Drive for 75
Here is the updated Drive for 75, including this week’s stories on a very positive NY Times story on how LeadingAge member Forest Hills of DC succeeded in increasing the number of staff who accepted a COVID vaccination, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey of frontline caregivers showing 65% of LTC frontline workers have either had at least one dose or are planning/signed up to get one, and a story about a new nationwide campaign the Administration is rolling out to urge people to get vaccinated.  

THANK YOU TO OUR GOLD PARTNER

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Nicole Schings
Nicole Schings is the Director of Member Services and Business Development. Nicole joined the association in 2018, and oversees our Member Services program, our Partnership and Associate Member relationships, and our online education system. A graduate of Washburn University, Nicole uses her 22 years of experience in the association world to enhance the support of our members, problem solve their issues and bring new partners into the LeadingAge Kansas family. Outside of work, Nicole is passionate about geocaching and moments spent with her dog, Blu. You can reach Nicole directly at 785.670.8048.

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