It looks like you have an older browser that is not supported by this site. Please click here to update.
We are closely monitoring the news and guidance concerning COVID-19 and are working with the Governor’s office, the Indiana Department of Health and AHCA/NCAL, to ensure our member providers receive the necessary guidance to care for the most vulnerable Hoosiers. Visit this webpage daily to access the latest updates.
The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) has identified an issue with reporting COVID-19 Vaccination Data for resident and health care personnel in the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) Long-term Care Facility Component. Users can initially save their data, but if users attempt to modify data for question #2, an error message is generated, and those modifications cannot be saved in the NHSN application.
The CDC is actively working to resolve this problem and anticipates it to be fixed on July 11, 2023.
The SNF QRP reporting deadline is Monday, May 15 at 11:59 p.m. This includes required reporting of Influenza Vaccination Coverage among Health Care Personnel to NHSN as this data can only be reported by facilities with SAMS level 3 access.
This week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that the Notifications of Enforcement Discretion issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act during the COVID-19 public health emergency will expire at 11:59 pm on May 11, 2023, due to the expiration of the COVID-19 public health emergency.
While Congress extended many of the telehealth coverage flexibilities impacting AHCA/NCAL members and their residents permanently or until December 31, 2024, this policy change will no longer permit providers to use technology such as unsecure iPads, smart phones, or other technology for telehealth services unless they meet the stringent HIPAA patient privacy requirements after August 9, 2023.
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) released two important updates related to the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 and American Rescue Plan (ARP) Rural payments HRSA began distributing in November 2021 and throughout 2022.
The Biden Administration announced a COVID-19 Winter Preparedness Plan. The plan expands access to testing, vaccines and treatments, preparing for the impact of variants, cases and hospitalizations in local communities, and protecting the most-high risk Americans, including residents of nursing homes and other congregate living facilities.
The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) announced it is taking steps to make it easier for long term care (LTC) facilities to administer the COVID-19 vaccine to staff and residents. The CDC is now allowing LTC pharmacies to transfer COVID-19 vaccine/boosters to LTC facilities in single dose vials to directly vaccinate residents and staff by waiving some of the reporting requirements LTC pharmacies had to follow.
IHCA/INCAL contact: Lori Davenport, ldavenport@ihca.org
For questions, contact Deeksha Kapoor at dkapoor@ihca.org
IHCA/INCAL Contact: Nick Goodwin| ngoodwin@ihca.org
OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard for Health Care Workers
EMResource is a web-based resource management and communication tool used to monitor and notify changes in resources statuses. IDH is asking you to update your PPE supplies daily in this tool so that resources can be distributed efficiently.
Coordinate account registration with your facility administrator. We recommend designating at least two individuals that can track and input data into EMResource.
dasds