STATE NEWS
Kansas COVID-19 Cluster Summary
As of March 9th, there are 3 long-term care facilities with clusters and two are LeadingAge Kansas Members.
Statewide Active COVID-19 Clusters
- Clusters: 193
- Cases: 5,636
- Hospitalizations: 65
Kansas COVID-19: Case Rates
- Cases: 768,422
- Total Case Rate Per 1,000: 263.76
- Daily Cases Diagnosed: 11
Long-Term Care Facilities with Active Cluster Case Information
- Clusters: 157
- Cases: 3,033
- Hospitalizations: 56
Source: https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas
VACCINE NEWS
Kansas COVID-19 Vaccination Overview as of 3/9/2022
- 4,221,521 Total Doses Reported as Administered
– First Dose: 1,945,942
– Second Dose: 1,571,953
– Third Dose: 703,627 - 5,437,710 Total Doses Distributed
– State Distributed: 3,000,600 - 62.2% of Kansans Vaccinated with One Dose
- 53.9% of Kansas Completed COVID-19 Vaccine Series
Source: https://www.kansasvaccine.gov/158/Data
FEDERAL NEWS
CMS National Nursing Home Stakeholder Call Thursday, March 10th, 2 PM CT
Long-term care providers, facility staff and resident advocates are encouraged to attend, and the event is open to the public.Registration is required: https://cms.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_-NDyFIcMRua2IWMH_Zt0eA
OSHA Announces Focused Inspections of Nursing Homes and Hospitals
OSHA has announced that they will initiate focused inspections and investigations of nursing homes and hospitals that treat COVID-19 patients. The intent of the OSHA initiative is to magnify their presence in high-hazard healthcare facilities over a three-month period (March 9, 2022 to June 9, 2022), to encourage employers to take the necessary steps to protect their workers against the hazards of COVID-19. Inspections opened under this initiative shall comprise 15% of all inspections per Region for the designated three-month period.
An OSHA memorandum outlines instructions and guidance for the short-term inspection initiative. This initiative supplements OSHA’s targeted enforcement under the COVID-19 National Emphasis Program (NEP) by focusing on follow-up and monitoring inspections of hospitals and skilled nursing care facilities that OSHA had previously inspected or investigated.
OSHA noted in the announcement that although OSHA withdrew the non-recordkeeping portions of the Healthcare Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on December 27, 2021, the agency will accept continued compliance with the Healthcare ETS as satisfying an employers’ related obligations under the General Duty Clause, Personal Protective Equipment, and Respiratory Protection standards.
Resource: Utilize our free COVID Training for CNAs that LeadingAge Kansas developed through a grant from OSHA. The interactive program helps CNAs and other professionals understand their role in COVID safety. Click here to learn more. Each participant receives a certificate of completion and there are no-cost CE credits available for those that qualify.
HUD Issues More Than $20 Million in COVID-19 Supplemental Payments
HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing announced that it has issued COVID-19 Supplemental Payments (CSP) totaling more than $20 million. The payments have gone to the owners/agents with Section 8 project based rental assistance and Section 202 contracts who requested reimbursements throughout four rounds of CARES Act funding, with the most recent payments, pending payments, or approvals sent to housing providers last week. LeadingAge had advocated strongly for certain flexibilities and extensions within the CSP process that allowed many LeadingAge members to secure reimbursements for both operational and capital COVID-19 costs at senior housing communities, including costs for the installation of building-wide Wi-Fi systems. For the owners who have not yet received decision notification emails for the fourth round, please note that HUD anticipates queuing additional payments by the end of this week. For owners who have not yet received an approval or denial notification, they can expect to receive an email communication from HUD within the next week. Please email Juliana at jbilowich@leadingage.org with questions.
LEADINGAGE KANSAS NEWS
Join Us for Our Weekly Webinar on Friday
Get the latest on COVID, CMS, the Legislature and more this Friday at 10 AM. See you then. If you haven’t registered for future calls, you can do so here.
LEADINGAGE NATIONAL NEWS
LeadingAge Coronavirus Call
As case numbers of COVID-19 continue their decline and cities and localities begin to ease COVID-19 restrictions, many LeadingAge members are anxious to know what new guidance means for their staff and residents and how they can safely move towards this new period of reopening our communities. On Wednesday, March 9th, we will welcome back Dr. Nimalie Stone, U.S. Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, to discuss the latest guidance from the CDC and how it can impact your daily operations in providing services in your community. She will take your questions on COVID-19 and give us insight on what lies ahead.If you haven’t registered for LeadingAge Update Calls, you can do so here.
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