On April 30, 2020, the Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it would be issuing new guidance to State Survey Agencies for the award and administration of supplemental funding provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The guidance will address funding for surveys of additional infection control measures at nursing facilities throughout the country.

As part of the CARES Act, Congress appropriated $100 million in supplemental funds for costs survey and certification efforts with a focus on areas where there is community spread of COVID-19. This funding was directed to states to complete focused infection control surveys for nursing homes by July 2020. In addition, funding will be used to increase complaint surveys based on COVID-19 trend data reported by nursing homes to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and “perform ‘reopening’ surveys of facilities with previous COVID-19 outbreaks using unique survey protocols to ensure the facilities have Infection Control systems if there is another phase of the outbreak.”

As part of this new funding, states will also be able to purchase additional PPE (for example, N-95 face masks, surgical gowns, goggles, gloves, and thermometers) for surveyors to allow them to safely enter the building.

In addition to the funding award for surveys, CMS announced a new independent Commission that will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the nursing home response to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The Commission will provide recommendations to the contractors to review and report to CMS to help inform immediate and future responses to COVID-19 in nursing homes. The Commission is expected to convene in late May and has been given the directive to develop recommendations on three key tasks:

• Putting nursing home residents first by ensuring they are protected from COVID-19 and improving the responsiveness of care delivery to maximize the quality of life for residents.

• Strengthening efforts to enable rapid and effective identification and mitigation of COVID-19 transmission (and other infectious disease) in nursing homes; and

• Enhancing strategies to improve compliance with infection control policies in response to COVID-19.

Additionally, the Commission will focus on identifying potentially innovative approaches to using nursing home data to allow for better coordination between federal surveyors, state and local entities, and nursing homes to address the current spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes. The Commission will also use data to assess efforts across the country to stop or contain the virus within these facilities. Additional information related to the Commission will be available soon.

We will issue updates to this report as the new directives are announced by the Commission.

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Skilled Nursing Facility Providers Can Expect Increased Survey & Enforcement after CMS Announcements

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