Posted on 08/18/2021 1:43:02 PM PDT by hoosierboy
Nursing homes participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs will be required to have all staff vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to continue receiving federal funding for the programs.
President Joe Biden is expected to make the announcement later today, with guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services expected to come shortly after, according to an Associated Press report citing CNN as an original source.
Providers could be expected to meet the mandate as soon as next month, according to the report.
On a call with her members this afternoon, Ruth Katz, senior vice president of public policy and advocacy for LeadingAge, confirmed that her organization had heard from CMS about the mandate.
She said agency officials expect to release details in writing tonight and are “still working out details in real-time” about effective dates and penalties.
Although the CNN report indicated the change would come as part of Medicare’s Rules of Participation, Katz said it was unclear whether providers would be removed from the program or financially penalized for having unvaccinated workers.
Currently, about 60% of nursing home staff nationwide are vaccinated against COVID-19, according to federal data. That’s compared to 82.4% of residents.
Nursing homes, by far, have been the deadliest places affiliated with COVID-19, accounting for approximately one-third of all coronavirus deaths in the U.S.
Regulatory lever
Earlier this month, a trio of prominent health policy experts called on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to “tap the levers” of its regulatory powers and use the Rules of Participation to require frontline nursing home workers to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“Unvaccinated healthcare workers put patients at high risk, given that their jobs require close interaction with unvaccinated patients and others who are immunocompromised and at higher risk for complications,” wrote Jill Rosenthal, Emily Gee and Maura Calsyn of the Public Health Policy at the liberal-leaning Center for American Progress. “CMS should now update (the Rules of Participation) to mandate that healthcare and LTC staff and contractors, as well as healthcare providers with hospital privileges, are vaccinated against COVID-19.”
The Rules of Participation govern the operations of all U.S. nursing homes receiving Medicaid or Medicare payments in exchange for caring for beneficiaries. Those that violate the rules are subject to penalties, and repeated infractions can lead to loss of certification and removal from the federal system.
To update such rules, CMS normally uses a notice-and-comment rulemaking process, but the authors noted the agency can instead adopt changes by issuing interim final rules when it finds there is “good cause” and the traditional process is “impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.”
On Aug. 10, CMS told McKnight’s the agency remained dedicated to ensuring nursing home staff and residents have the information they need to improve vaccination rates, but affirmed its ability to enact a mandate.
“CMS has authority to establish requirements to ensure the health and safety of individuals receiving care from all providers and suppliers participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs,” a spokeswoman said.
Federal regulators previously used a rule change to force hospitals into action: In 1965, federal officials ushered in desegregation by making it a requirement for Medicare eligibility.
Some providers already mandating
Some providers’ self-imposed mandate deadlines already are staged to kick in from August 23 through Nov. 1, as of press time, setting up potential showdowns at staffing-strapped facilities around the country.
Many providers have struggled with what many have called an ethical imperative to mandate the vaccine in their buildings, while others fret what that might do to resistant workers who could walk away from the job rather than get the shots. An industry survey in June said that 94% of providers were already reporting worker shortages.
LeadingAge is part of a coalition of nearly 60 healthcare groups that on July 26 called for vaccine mandates. The American Health Care Association has not issued a similar call but eventually has expressed support for the growing list of providers issuing mandates.
The biggest shoe regarding long-term care providers and mandates dropped when Genesis, the nation’s largest nursing home chain, announced Aug. 2 that it was giving employees three weeks to get at least a first vaccination shot. Others, including Pruitt Health followed with similar announcements, though the majority of U.S. long-term care providers have not announced mandates on their own.
CMS is another federal agency that needs to be disbanded and tossed into the trash heap!!
CMS will need to have massive increases in their reimbursement rate for increased salaries for nursing staffs—but they won’t figure that out until patients start dying from lack of nursing staff instead of Covid.
If you want folks to risk their health with these experimental vaccines then you need to compensate them accordingly.
The next mandate will be for all Medicare/Medicaid recipients to be vaccinated in order to continue to receive benefits. I’ll be very surprised if that does not happen. Lord have mercy on us all.
Biden gave a pass to the Postal Workers. Do nursing home workers look different?
“Take this job and shove it!”
These people work for us. Not the other way around.
It sounds simple to collect damages for injuries sustained from experimental vaccine but that may happen many years later in any case no one will claim responsibility. These are the people that say the Taliban can have our weapons and ammo with tens of thousands of civilians in their care who’ll pulling the military
So once these caregivers get poked they can come in asymptomatic and shedding virus to pass on to the elderly with weakened immune systems?
Sounds like a great idea if they want to free up beds.
Nursing homes participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs will be required to have all staff vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to continue receiving federal funding for the programs. President Joe Biden is expected to make the announcement later today
I have no idea if this includes the nursing home my wife works at. Guess we’ll find out pretty soon.
People should just ignore this illegitimate moron posing as CIC.
Totally illegal.... Lawsuit’z in 3..2..1..
From experience trying to get help .... driving for Amazon pays more and is a more pleasant work environment. Big shortages already & this will make it much worse.
If you’ve never had a loved one/friend in a nursing home where the care is “not good” ..... well, it’s pretty awful.
They can try, but no sale, the Medicare health plans have been pushing the jab for a long time now, still no sale
When the unvaccinated are fired they should file suit. They should also file complaints with OSHA, Medicare, Medicaid to shut them down for understaffing.
If they make it a mandate, they’ll just not give us our benefits. Or if they make social security dependent upon the vaccines, they’ll just not pay us.
CDC and WH employees also get a pass.
different union
congress can make a mandate on SS and medicare but CMS can not..
markman46 wrote:
“congress can make a mandate on SS and medicare but CMS can not..”
That’s good to know; many folks are on social security.
And there are many folks on Medicare already, or soon to be eligible.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.