Public Policy Updates

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is issuing this Health Alert Network (HAN) Health Advisory to notify healthcare providers, public health authorities and the public of an increased risk of dengue virus (DENV) infections in the United States in 2024. Global incidence of dengue in 2024 has been the highest on record for … Continued

CDC’s Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion offers FREE patient and healthcare professional (HCP) resources for Be Antibiotics Aware, patient and HCP resources for Get Ahead of Sepsis, and educational resources for C. diff to help raise awareness about these important topics. Order free print materials on CDC Publications On Demand by typing “C. Diff,” “Sepsis,” … Continued

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been supporting the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in responding to its largest surge of clade I mpox (MPVX) cases ever recorded. Since January 1, 2023, DRC has reported more than 20,000 suspect mpox cases and more than 1,000 deaths. Clade IIb mpox continues to circulate … Continued

On June 27th at 2pm ET join the CDC and the American Medical Association for a panel discussion on preventing widespread measles exposure in healthcare settings. Panelists include experts from the Pediatric Pandemic Network, American Nurses Association and American Academy of Pediatrics. They will share their firsthand experiences and lessons learned in caring for patients … Continued

Pediatric facilities face distinct challenges when it comes to infection prevention and control (IPC) due to the vulnerability of their patients, the nature of pediatric care, and the involvement of family members. CDC’s Project Firstline and the American Medical Association held a webinar to discuss the unique IPC practices implemented in pediatric settings to meet … Continued

APIC provided comments and recommendations to CMS on its annual payment update proposals for FY 2025. APIC’s comments to the Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) proposed rule included support for proposed quality reporting requirements for CAUTI and CLABSI in oncology wards, support for modifying respiratory illness reporting requirements, and support for separating the Antimicrobial … Continued

NIOSH has honored a request by Champak Enterprise Co., Ltd. to voluntarily rescind NIOSH approval to five respirators. As of June 1, 2024, any respirator marked with the following NIOSH approval numbers are no longer NIOSH approved and may not be used, manufactured, assembled, sold, or distributed: 84A-7229, 84A-7230, 84A-7832, 84A-7842, and 84A-8080. Read the … Continued

A second human case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5) virus infection has been identified in the state of Michigan. This is the third human case associated with an ongoing multistate outbreak of A(H5N1) in U.S. dairy cows. None of the three cases are associated with the others. All three cases occurred in dairy … Continued

APIC provided comments to CMS on annual payment updates for Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities and Skilled Nursing Facilities. CMS has not proposed new HAI reporting requirements for these settings for FY 2025, but APIC provided input on potential future measures, support for data collection on social determinants of health, and continued advocacy for infection preventionists in … Continued