Federal health authorities announced Friday that they will be sending Quality Improvement Organizations across the country to give nursing homes in COVID-19 hotspots “immediate assistance.”
The targeted areas will be identified by the White House Coronavirus Task Force, a notice from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced Friday.
CMS also said it is implementing an enhanced survey process tailored to meet the specific concerns of hotspot areas and will coordinate federal, state and local efforts “to leverage all available resources to these facilities.”
“The purpose of these efforts is to target facilities with known infection control issues by providing resources and support that will help them improve quality and safety and protect vulnerable Americans,” CMS said in its announcement.
Provider advocates have continually noted that nursing homes have accounted for 30% to 40% of COVID-19 related deaths in the U.S., and internationally. That is all the more reason, they claim, that federal authorities need to do more to help providers get needed personal protective equipment, timely testing and other resources.
The agency has deferred much of the direct assistance to local and state authorities. In a video released Thursday about her agency’s oversight of nursing home issues, Administrator Seema Verma said, “Our response continues to be locally executed, state managed and federally supported.”
Regulators also have reported that providers, overall, still need to do better with infection control practices.
“Nursing homes are especially vulnerable to the prevalence and spread of COVID-19. Additional resources are needed to ensure nursing homes take proactive steps to enhance infection control policies and practices to limit potential transmission and prevent widespread outbreaks within these facilities,” the agency said in its announcement Friday afternoon.
The American Health Care Association / National Center for Assisted Living said it greatly appreciated additional resources being directed to facilities in hotspots.
“It is critical that long-term care residents and staff are a priority for testing, personal protective equipment and staffing,” said, David Gifford, M.D., the chief medical officer at AHCA/NCAL, in a statement to McKnight’s Long-Term Care News. “Public health officials at every level must prioritize getting resources and support to our long-term care providers, especially in areas where community spread is occurring. The fight against this virus is far from over, and with the proper resources, facilities can better identify who has the virus and make tactical decisions to protect residents and staff.”
Janine Finck Boyle, VP, regulatory affairs, at LeadingAge, said the additional resources would be a good thing but cautioned in a statement Friday that more would still needed.
“Any help in fighting the coronavirus is welcome. QIOs bring much-needed collaboration and extra hands to help nursing homes navigate infection control challenges,” Janine Finck Boyle said in a statement to McKnight’s. “But, this effort does not mitigate or lessen other needs, such as consistent steady supplies of personal protective equipment, access to tests with rapid-turnaround results, and funding to help pay for the monumental additional costs incurred as a result of this pandemic. Nursing homes need all of these things to ensure residents’ and healthcare workers’ safety.”
QIOs are CMS contractors that work with healthcare providers to help them improve the quality of healthcare they provide to Medicare beneficiaries.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
