Public Policy Updates

1/13/22 — In the FY 2022 Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) final rule, CMS implemented a “Measure Suppression Policy.” Under this policy, CMS will not use certain measures (including NHSN HAI measures) from the Q3 and Q4 2020 reporting periods for performance scoring in the Hospital-Acquired Condition (HAC) Reduction Program and the Hospital Value-Based … Continued

1/11/22 — CMS has updated its “Nursing Home Visitation FAQs” document to provide additional clarification on its revised guidance issued in November 2021. The key message is that visitation must be permitted at all times with very limited and rare exceptions, in accordance with residents’ rights. Nursing homes should enable visitation following these three key points: • Adhere to … Continued

1/11/22 — NIOSH has honored a request by ALG Health to voluntarily rescind ALL NIOSH respirator approvals issued to ALG Health. As of January 6, 2022, any respirator marked with a NIOSH approval label indicating any of the following approval numbers is no longer NIOSH-approved. TC-84A-9259, TC-84A -9262, TC-84A-9270, TC-84A-9271, TC-84A-9273, TC-84A-9274, TC-84A-9275, TC-84A-9280, TC-84A-9281, TC-84A-9282, TC- 84A-9288, … Continued

1/7/22 — The FDA amended the EUA for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to shorten the time between the completion of a primary series of the vaccine and a booster dose to at least five months for individuals 18 years of age and older.The CDC followed suit by updating its recommendation for getting the a Moderna … Continued

1/11/22 — The FDA is warning people to stop using the LuSys Laboratories COVID-19 Antigen Test (Nasal/Saliva) and the LuSys Laboratories COVID-19 IgG/IgM Antibody Test. The performance of these tests has not been adequately established and the FDA believes there is likely a high risk of false results when using these tests. Neither test has been authorized, cleared, … Continued

1/6/22 — CDC has released updated guidance for schools regarding COVID-19. Click on the links below to learn more. Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools – CDC update 1/6/22 Overview of COVID-19 Isolation for Schools – CDC update 1/6/22 Overview of COVID-19 Quarantine for Schools – CDC update 1/6/22 Responding to COVID-19 Cases in K-12 Schools: Resources … Continued

1/4/22 — The CDC has updated isolation and quarantine recommendations for the public. These recommendations do not apply to healthcare personnel. New recommendations state the people with COVID-19 should isolate for 5 days, and if they are asymptomatic or their symptoms are resolving, follow that by 5 days of wearing a mask when around others. … Continued

1/3/22 — Covidien, LP is recalling its Puritan Bennett 980 Series Ventilator due to a capacitor manufacturing assembly error that may cause the ventilator to become inoperable or stop working as intended. Read the FDA recall notice.

1/3/22 — The FDA amended the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The revised EUA: Expands the use of a single booster dose to include use in individuals age 12 through 15 Shorten the time between the completion of the primary vaccination series and a booster dose to at least five months … Continued