Compliance deadlines, penalty timeframes and other survey and certification requirements for nursing facilities might be subject to adjustment due to the recent federal government shutdown, according to a memorandum from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The 16-day government shutdown that began on Oct. 1 curtailed certain survey and certification activities and created questions about timetables. For example, revisit surveys for stopping an imposed civil monetary penalty did not occur during the shutdown. Providers that came into compliance during the shutdown might be able to retroactively verify this to establish the end date for penalties, according to the Oct. 25 CMS memo.

“If a per-day CMP was imposed prior to or during the shutdown and a revisit was not conducted due to the shutdown, consider the available evidence as to exactly when the facility achieved substantial compliance,” CMS instructed state survey agency directors.

The memo identifies three specific criteria that survey agencies should consider to make their CMP end date determination, including that an on-site or paper/desk revisit has occurred.

Click here to access the complete memo.

Click here to access a separate CMS memo from Oct. 25, which states that F-Tag 454 has been deleted. In order to “avoid unnecessary duplication and redundancy,” the Life Safety Code requirements under this tag will now be cited under other F or K Tags.