FEDERAL NEWS
CMS Vaccine Mandate Comments
LeadingAge National thanks everyone who participated in their call last week on the CMS Vaccine Mandate rule. LeadingAge will submit comments on the interim final rule at the end of December. Please send feedback for inclusion in LeadingAge comments to Jodi Eyigor jeyigor@leadingage.org by Wednesday, December 15th. LeadingAge Kansas members are also encouraged to submit comments on their own as well. Refer to this resource for assistance in constructing your comments. Comments on the rule are due to the Federal Register by January 4, 2022.
NEW Last Chance PRF Reporting Opportunity
A prior HRSA communication seemed to indicate HRSA was going to open the application process one more time for Phase 4 and ARP rural. Turns out, this was inaccurate. Instead, HRSA is opening a brief opportunity for providers to complete or submit their PRF reports for Reporting Period 1. Apparently, some smaller and rural providers encountered challenges around the grace period deadline (previously Nov. 30th). The Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Reporting Portal will open for the completion or submission of reports for Reporting Period 1 with a deadline of Monday, December 20, 2021 at 10:59 PM Central. This additional reporting window though brief also presents an opportunity for PRF recipients who submitted a Reporting Period 1 report but need to correct an error to make those corrections or revise their submission. Providers wishing to correct a submitted report must contact the Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522 to gain access to their submitted report. Resubmitted reports must also be received by December 20, 2021 at 10:59 PM Central. This may present an opportunity for nursing homes to reallocate their reported infection control expenses and hold them for application to Nursing Home Infection Control payments as part of their Reporting Period 2 submission. HRSA reporting resources can be found here. For assistance with reporting or portal questions, members can contact the Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522. Members can also contact their accounting firm or auditors, or Nicole Fallon at LeadingAge with any questions they may have. An article is here.
Boosters Now in CDC Nursing Home Dashboard
CDC’s Nursing Home COVID-19 Vaccination Data Dashboard on COVID Data Tracker now includes national and state level data on additional doses and booster shots among residents and staff. This data is also available at the facility level on CMS COVID-19 Nursing Home Data webpage. This additional data builds on data already in the dashboard, which is reported by nursing homes to the NHSN Long-Term Care COVID-19 Module, and displays primary series vaccination coverage among nursing home residents and staff. Both sets of data will be updated weekly.
LEADINGAGE KANSAS NEWS
Final Weekly Webinar of the Year
Next week is our final webinar of 2021. If you haven’t already, Register here.
LEADINGAGE NATIONAL NEWS
This Week’s Online Coronavirus Policy Updates
- Monday, December 13th, 2:30 PM – Policy updates and Deke Cateau, LeadingAge board member and CEO of A.G. Rhodes, will speak about his book, Brush Fire: Covid-19 and Our Nursing Homes.
- Wednesday, December 15th, 2:30 PM – Policy updates and Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), will speak about hiring refugees, highlighting workforce opportunities in the aging services field.
RESOURCES
- Webinar with Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on COVID-19 Booster Shots for older adults and people with disabilities – December 14th at 10 AM Central. Register for the webinar here.
THANK YOU TO OUR GOLD SPONSOR
