The purpose of this letter is to provide information about two announcements made by Health and Human Services (HHS).

• On July 14, 2020, a press release announced an initiative to increase testing in nursing homes. Through the initiative, HHS will send rapid point-of-care testing instruments and tests to nursing homes.
• On July 22, 2020, a press release announced mandatory weekly testing for nursing home residents and staff under certain conditions. 

The announcements did not offer specific directions for State Agencies to provide any additional guidance. Residential Care Services (RCS) is seeking more information. We will provide it as we receive it. What we do know is discussed below.

Point-of-Care Testing:

Each nursing home will receive one diagnostic instrument – either the Quidel Sofia 2 Instrument (https://www.quidel.com/immunoassays/sofia-tests-kits/sofia-2-analyzer) or the BD Veritor Plus system (https://www.bd.com/en-ca/offerings/capabilities/microbiology-solutions/point-of-caretesting/veritor-plus-system) along with the associated tests. Following the initial distribution, nursing homes can procure additional tests directly from the respective manufacturer. Both of the testing instruments use antigen tests that can provide results in minutes. All nursing homes must have the capability to screen and test residents at baseline, and test staff on a weekly basis or according to specific guidance by the state and local health jurisdictions. This procurement will also enable testing of visitors if appropriate for that facility.

Distribution will begin with nursing homes prioritized by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The prioritization is based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) epidemiological hotspot data, as well as nursing homes that have reported the following information to the CDC by July 5th:

• Three or more confirmed or suspected new cases of COVID-19 within the last 7 days.
• At least one new COVID-19 case in the last 7 days after having zero previous COVID-19 cases.
• Inadequate access to testing within the last 7 days.
• At least one new resident death due to COVID-19 within the last 7 days.
• At least one new confirmed or suspected COVID-19 case among staff within the last 7 days.

Facilities that do not have a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA) Certificate of Waiver to administer the tests will not receive a testing instrument. Many nursing homes in Washington State have a CLIA certificate.

Read full letter here.

Questions:

Contact:

Laura Hofmann, MSN, RN – Director of Clinical and Nursing Facility Regulatory Services
c: 425-231-4804