Dear Pharmacists,
There are several new CMS initiatives designed to protect nursing home residents from coronavirus disease 2019. Here is more information:
New Funding
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will devote $5 billion of the Provider Relief Fund authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to Medicare-certified long term care facilities and state veterans’ homes (“nursing homes”), to build nursing home skills and enhance nursing homes’ response to COVID-19, including enhanced infection control.
Enhanced Testing
Rapid point-of-care diagnostic testing devices will be distributed to nursing homes, and the new funding from the Provider Relief Fund, CMS will begin requiring, rather than recommending, that all nursing homes in states with a 5% positivity rate or greater test all nursing home staff each week.
More than 15,000 testing devices will be deployed over the next few months to help support this mandate, with over 600 devices shipping this week.
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