Insights & Resources

On April 7, 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released a memorandum, QSO-22-15, announcing the restoration of certain minimum regulatory requirements that had been waived in response to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.  CMS will end the waivers in two groups, under two time frames.
 

• Skilled Nursing Facility (“SNF”)/Nursing Facility Blanket Waivers that will end on May 7, 2022, thirty days from release of CMS’ Memorandum include the following:
  • Resident Groups: Residents must be permitted to meet in resident groups.
  • Physician Delegation: Tasks that a physician is required to personally perform may no longer be delegated to a physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse specialist.
  • Physician Visits: All required visits must be made in person by the physician or non-physician practitioner.
  • Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI): All prior requirements to be in compliance with QAPI will need to be met.
  • Discharge Planning: Detailed information for the purposes of planning resident discharges by using data, such as patient assessment data, quality measures and resource use must be shared with residents.
  • Clinical Records: Long-Term Care facilities must provide residents with their records within two (2) working days of a request for such records.
     
• Various Provider Blanket Waivers that will end on June 6, 2022, sixty days from release of CMS’s Memorandum include the following:
  • Physical Environment/Outside Windows and Doors: Nursing facilities may not house residents in non-SNF buildings for which they obtained temporary certifications for purposes of isolating residents during the COVID public health emergency.  Every sleeping room in a long-term care facility (including SNFs inpatient hospice, intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities [“ICFs/IIDs”]) must have either an outside window or an outside door.
  • Life Safety Code, Medical Equipment Inspection, Testing & Maintenance (“ITM”): Long-Term Care facilities (including SNFs, inpatient hospice, and ICFs/IIDs) are to resume scheduling all required ITM for life safety codes and medical equipment.
  • Paid Feeding Assistants: Paid feeding assistants are required to attain eight (8) hours of minimum training through a State-approved training course.
  • In-Service Training: Nurse aides are required to receive no less than twelve (12) training hours per year.
  • Training and Certification of Nurse Aides: All current and prospective nurse aides are required to complete and pass the Nurse Aide Training Program in order to be employed longer than four (4) months.

Click here to view the QSO-22-15 memorandum in its entirety.
 
Should you have any questions regarding the above, please contact the Garfunkel Wild attorney with whom you regularly work, or contact us at info@garfunkelwild.com.