CMS NEWS:
Biden-Harris Administration to Expand Vaccination
Requirements for Health Care Settings



New action will protect patients of the 50,000 providers and over 17 million
health care workers in Medicare and Medicaid certified facilities

The Biden-Harris Administration will require COVID-19 vaccination of staff
within all Medicare and Medicaid-certified facilities to protect both them and
patients from the virus and its more contagious Delta variant.  Facilities across
the country should make efforts now to get health care staff vaccinated to make
sure they are in compliance when the rule takes effect.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), in collaboration with the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced today that emergency
regulations requiring vaccinations for nursing home workers will be expanded to
include hospitals, dialysis facilities, ambulatory surgical settings, and home health
agencies, among others, as a condition for participating in the Medicare and
Medicaid programs. The decision was based on the continued and growing spread
of the virus in health care settings, especially in parts of the U.S. with higher
incidence of COVID-19.

“There is no higher priority for us than patient health and safety. As the Delta variant
strengthens, the Biden-Harris Administration is committed to doing everything we
can to keep patients, and those who care for them, safe,” said U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra. “There is no question
that staff, across any health care setting, who remain unvaccinated pose both direct
and indirect threats to patient safety and population health. Ensuring safety and
access to all patients, regardless of their entry point into the health care system,
is essential.”

Nursing homes with an overall staff vaccination rate of 75% or lower experience
higher rates of preventable COVID infection. In CMS’s review of available data,
the agency is seeing lower staff vaccination rates among hospital and End Stage
Renal Disease (ESRD) facilities. To combat this issue, CMS is using its authority to
establish vaccine requirements for all providers and suppliers that participate in the
Medicare and Medicaid programs. Vaccinations have proven to reduce the risk of
severe illness and death from COVID-19 and are effective against the Delta variant. 
CMS will continue to work closely with all Medicare and Medicaid certified facilities
to ensure these new requirements are met.

“We know that those working in health care want to do what is best for their patients
in order to keep them safe,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. 
“As the Delta variant continues to spread, we know the best defense against it lies
with the COVID-19 vaccine. Data show that the higher the level of vaccination rates
among providers and staff, the lower the infection rate is among patients who are
dependent upon them for care. Now is the time to act. I’m urging everyone, but
especially those fighting this virus on the front lines, to get vaccinated and protect
themselves, their families, and their patients from COVID-19.”

CMS is developing an Interim Final Rule with Comment Period that will be issued in October. 
CMS expects certified Medicare and Medicaid facilities to act in the best interest of
patients and staff by complying with new COVID-19 vaccination requirements. 
Health care workers employed in these facilities who are not currently vaccinated
are urged to begin the process immediately. Facilities are urged to use all available
resources to support employee vaccinations, including employee education and clinics,
as they work to meet new federal requirements.




Medicaid.gov sent this bulletin
at 09/09/2021 04:37 PM EDT



Candace Owens