CMS hosted a national nursing homes stakeholder call Wednesday. Information was provided on CMS and CDC updates. CMS also addressed the vaccine mandate. The vaccine mandate is now in effect nationwide. This timeline shows the compliance dates for each state. This infographic helps determine which provider settings are subject to the mandate. Additionally, CMS addressed common questions:

• Are nursing homes required to maintain vaccination documentation on-site for contractors?
  Nursing homes must know the vaccination status of contractors and must be able to access documentation as needed but are not required to maintain documentation on-site.
• Are N95s (or other respirators) required for unvaccinated staff as source control?
  Unvaccinated staff are not required to wear N95s for source control. However, a nursing home may choose to require unvaccinated staff to wear N95s for source control as an “additional precaution” per the vaccine mandate rule. Please remember, RCS has stated you must go “above and beyond” what you are doing with unvaccinated staff to mitigate risk to residents.
• Are nursing homes required to implement all “additional precautions” outlined in the rule guidance memos?
  Nursing homes should strive to implement as many additional precautions as they can and should use a layered approach that seeks to mitigate transmission and spread, but they are not required to implement specifically the additional precautions outlined in the memos.

QSO 22-07 All outlines the vaccine requirement, while Long-Term Care and Skilled Nursing Facility Attachment  A  outlines process you will need to have in place when CMS surveys for the vaccine requirement.

Questions?

Contact:

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