E-News Update Articles

The Boston Medical Center is offering free, virtual X-waiver training (link to pdf on Aug-Sept Xwaiver training in the folder) August and September 2022 for all prescribers regardless if they currently prescribe buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder (OUD). The training is necessary to prescribe buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) in 30 or more residents. For those who treat fewer than 30 residents, the training is still highly recommended.

Join our webinar as we break down the purpose and value of practical and tactical budgeting in today’s evolving health care environment. We will reimagine the budgeting process and provide suggestions on how to create a budget that allows for various external pressures.

The second MassMAP annual disaster exercise preparation conference call is scheduled for Thursday, September 8th.

MassHealth has issued the following reminder for MassHealth Providers utilizing Bot Technology: Organizations that are using a bot on the POSC that has been operational since prior to July 1, 2022, must register the bot and request approval from MassHealth no later than September 30, 2022. If your organization is still operating a bot on the POSC after that date you will be out of compliance with MassHealth’s RPA policy and subject to monitoring and enforcement.

In August 2022, CMS held an open-door forum informing providers of the upcoming rollout of the Minimum Data Set (MDS) submission transition to the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES) in early 2023. This system was first piloted in May 2021 for Home Health Agencies. CMS is now working to transition all state agencies and CMS locations to the new internet-based system. The iQIES will consolidate and replace functionality from the Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (QIES), Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reports (CASPER), and Automated Survey Process Environment (ASPEN) legacy systems.

Join the Massachusetts eHealth Institute (MeHI) and the MassCyberCenter on September 8th at 10:00 am for our monthly health care provider cybersecurity call. As always, we will be joined by representatives of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Massachusetts State Police/Commonwealth Fusion Center who will provide updates on recent cyber threats and trends.

Last week the DPH sent a notification to nursing facilities to remind them that with the end of the 1135 waiver for nurse aide training and testing, nursing facilities have until October 6, 2022, to come back into compliance with the federal requirements for nurse aide staff hired between March 10, 2020, and June 6, 2022.

CMS released a revision QSO-22-15-NH & NLTC & LSC: Update to COVID-19 Emergency Declaration Blanket Waivers for Specific Providers to provide more information related to waivers of the Nurse Aide Training Competency and Evaluation requirements, and register for the upcoming Mass Senior Care Association educational programs.

The DPH sent a notification to nursing facilities to remind them that with the end of the 1135 waiver for nurse aide training and testing, nursing facilities have until October 6, 2022, to come back into compliance with the federal requirements for nurse aide staff hired between March 10, 2020, and June 6, 2022, and CMS is hosting a Nursing Home Staffing Study Stakeholder Listening Session.

MassHealth yesterday posted an amended Questions and Answers document to COMMBUYS for the Nursing Facility Capital Improvement and Innovation Project Forgivable Loan Program.

MassHealth has scheduled 2 surveillance testing payments to be deposited into nursing facilities’ accounts on Friday, August 19, 2022, and on last week’s DPH Long Term Care Provider monthly call, DPH clarified that temperature checks for individuals entering the facility were no longer required.

Hamel-Lydon Chapel & Cremation Service of Massachusetts appreciates the special care and dedication that frontline healthcare workers provide to patients on a regular basis.

The Long Term Care Survey manual, Phase 3 is now available to pre-order from AHCA for September delivery. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin enforcing new Phase 3 Requirements of Participation (ROP) on October 24, 2022.

The Department of Public Health is following up to yesterday's Long-Term Care monthly call discussion on antigen test expiry date extensions, Long Term Care Infection Prevention & Control Webinar Series, and registration is now open for the new Workforce Innovations Collaborative (WFIC).

Mass Senior Care is pleased to offer a variety of virtual education programs designed to help facilities understand and comply with new guidance and requirements. Registration is now open by visiting https://www.maseniorcare.org/events or by clicking on the specific program links.

Join the Massachusetts eHealth Institute (MeHI) and the MassCyberCenter on August 11th at 10:00 am for our monthly health care provider cybersecurity call. As always, we will be joined by representatives of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Massachusetts State Police/Commonwealth Fusion Center who will provide updates on recent cyber threats and trends. The monthly topic for this call will be mobile device cybersecurity.

The Long Term Care Survey manual, Phase 3 is now available to pre-order from AHCA for September delivery. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin enforcing new Phase 3 Requirements of Participation (ROP) on October 24, 2022.

Assisted living centers now have access to free COVID-19 testing for their staff and residents through December 31, 2022. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Operation Expanded Testing (OpET) program expanded access to free testing nationwide to now include assisted living communities, which previously targeted schools, shelters, and correctional facilities.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) will be holding a conference call for long-term care facilities on Wednesday, August 10 at 11:00 a.m, and Mass Senior Care is pleased to offer two important virtual education programs designed to help facilities understand and comply with new guidance and requirements.

There are so many learning opportunities at this year’s AHCA/NCAL Convention & Expo. Over the course of four days, October 9-12, you can choose from more than 100 sessions in 20-plus tracks, covering all critical aspects of long term and post-acute care.

For a small group of nursing facilities, the Fire Safety Evaluation System (FSES) has been a critical tool in documenting Life Safety Code® compliance through an equivalent means. The 2013 edition of NFPA 101A (FSES) left many nursing facilities without an effective equivalency tool, as the scoring methodology for the FSES became more restrictive and CMS would no longer accept waivers for areas that did not meet the equivalency.

The July 19 CMS Administrator’s National Stakeholder Call recording and transcript are now available. Click the link for the recording and transcript: CMS National Stakeholder Calls.

EOHHS has extended the deadline to August 29th for nursing facilities to submit grant applications through the state’s procurement website, COMMBUYS, for the Nursing Facility Capital Improvement and Innovation Project Forgivable Loan Program authorized under the state’s ARPA COVID-19 Recovery Act signed into law by Governor Baker on December 13, 2021, and the FY23 budget law appropriates $115 million in additional funding for the period July 2022 through June 2023, including $40 million for continuation of the COVID-19 workforce supplemental monthly funding program that begin last January.

Members are provided information on EOHHS booster letter to providers, DPH contract with additional vendor for nurse aide testing; CMS FY 23 Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) Final Rule; CMS Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF)/Long Term Care (LTC) Open Door Forum, and final chance to register for Thursday’s Webinar.

Skilled nursing Facility Provider Preview Reports are now available. Nursing facilities should review these reports by August 15, and contact CMS if you have questions about your scores.

NHSN has updated the Therapeutics Pathway reporting module, CMS launched its enhanced Nursing Home Five-Star Quality Rating System integrating data on weekend staffing rates for nurses and information on annual turnover among nurses and administrators, Mass Senior Care Association has collaborated with Jonathan Gruber, Ford Director of Economics at MIT, to develop a Long Term Care Career Advancement Survey, and Mass Senior Care's new education programs.

Mass Senior Care is pleased to offer a variety of virtual education programs designed to help facilities understand and comply with new guidance and requirements. Registration is now open by visiting https://www.maseniorcare.org/events or by clicking on the specific program links.

The CMS Minimum Data Set (MDS) 3.0 Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) Manual webpage was updated recently to include two important announcements:

The National Healthcare Safety Network began using the updated definition of up-to-date COVID-19 vaccination issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, information provided on MassHealth payments, reminder the deadline for nursing facilities to file the 2022 DCC-Q Final Form electronically on the UMASS portal is July 30th, and Mass Senior Care offers new education programs.

MassHealth has issued billing code guidance on two items (1) COVID MMQ Coding and (2) Claim Error Code 570 for Long Term Care Type of Claims and/or Institutional Type of Claims, which we are reproducing.

Mass Senior Care is pleased to offer three important virtual education programs designed to help facilities understand and comply with new guidance and requirements. Registration is now open by visiting https://www.maseniorcare.org/events or by clicking on the specific program links.

Massachusetts Senior Care Association is pleased to launch the Vote 2022 Campaign to ensure the long term care community has the opportunity to vote in the upcoming elections. At the November 8, 2022 Election, Massachusetts voters will elect a new Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, constitutional officers, members of Congress and local elected officials.

On July 18, 2022, MassHealth released a Request for Responses (RFR) for the next cycle of its Behavioral Health (BH) and Long Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Community Partners program.

The similarities between Hollywood and Healthcare are uncanny – both are highly sensitive to demographic trends and consumer preferences. Cinema and Skilled Nursing were also hardest hit by the pandemic and share similar challenges on the road to recovery. The target audiences may be different but share the desire to “stay home and chill” – Home & Community Based Theatre is here to stay.

On July 19, 2022, the DPH shared updated clinical guidance for COVID-19 therapeutics. Nirmatrelvir/ritonavir (PAXLOVID) continues to be the preferred treatment for most patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 at high risk of progression to severe disease and continues to be widely available and in adequate supply in Massachusetts.

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) this week released its 2022 data book on health care spending and the Medicare program.

The deadline for nursing facilities to file the 2022 DCC-Q Final Form electronically on the UMASS portal is July 30th. The webform to submit the final filing can be accessed at https://nf.uenter.org/NF/.

Mass Senior Care Association has collaborated with Jonathan Gruber, Ford Director of Economics at MIT, to develop a Long Term Care Career Advancement Survey. The purpose of this survey is to help us quantify the level of interest in career advancement among CNAs, and perceived barriers to advancement they may need assistance to overcome. Responses to this survey will provide MSCA with critical data needed to promote public policy and identify funding opportunities focused on career advancement of CNAs. This

The DPH through the Infection Prevention and Control Resource Hub will host office hours dedicated to addressing antimicrobial stewardship challenges on July 26, 2022, from 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm.

The FY23 Budget Conference Committee has approved $115 million for vital investments for nursing facility direct care staff and patient quality supports, and the U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra has renewed the declaration that a public health emergency exists​. This is effective July 15, 2022 and will continue for 90 days pursuant to federal law.

In addition to the $115 million contained in the FY23 conference committee budget, the Senate Ways & Means Committee this afternoon released its version of the Omnibus Economic Development Bill which, like the House of Representatives, includes an additional $165 million in vital funding for nursing facilities, and MassHealth posted to COMMBUYS a Question and Answer document on the Request for Applications (RFA) for the Nursing Facility Capital Improvement and Innovation Project Forgivable Loan Program authorized under the state’s ARPA COVID-19 Recovery Act signed into law by Governor Baker on December 13, 2021.

The House last night wrapped up a marathon session with the passage of its Omnibus Economic Development Bill. We are pleased to share that the House included $165 million in vital nursing home workforce investments as part of its $4.2 billion Economic Development bill.

Mass Senior Care Association has collaborated with Jonathan Gruber, Ford Director of Economics at MIT, to develop a Long Term Care Career Advancement Survey. The purpose of this survey is to help us quantify the level of interest in career advancement among CNAs, and perceived barriers to advancement they may need assistance to overcome. Responses to this survey will provide MSCA with critical data needed to promote public policy and identify funding opportunities focused on career advancement of CNAs.

Massachusetts Senior Care Association is pleased to launch the Vote 2022 Campaign to ensure the long term care community has the opportunity to vote in the upcoming elections. At the November 8, 2022 Election, Massachusetts voters will elect a new Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, constitutional officers, members of Congress and local elected officials. Many of our residents have participated in elections throughout their lives and view voting as an important civic obligation. Ensuring that long term care residents can

On July 7, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the display copy of the FY 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule.

Last week, the Massachusetts State Senate unanimously passed S.2973 An Act to expand access to high-quality, affordable early education and care. This reform legislation will transform early education and child care in the Commonwealth by making it more accessible and affordable for families, providing high-quality care for young children, strengthening early education providers, improving compensation and professional development for the early education workforce, and addressing the workforce needs of Massachusetts employers. Mass Senior Care Association has supported and advocated for

Mass Senior Care Association has been working tirelessly over the last several months to secure much needed funding for Massachusetts nursing facilities. We are pleased to share that the House of Representatives is finalizing action on its proposed $165 million in vital nursing home workforce investments as part of its $3.8 billion Economic Development bill. The funding would be executed through Medicaid COVID-19 supplemental payments.

MassHealth issued updated Instructions for the filing of the 2022 Final DCC-Q form, clarifying how to report the federal and state revenue COVID-19 revenue, DPH revised guidance on the Implementation of Order of the Commissioner of Public Health Regarding Control of COVID-19 in Long-Term Care Facilities, Mass Senior Care would like to remind members of the revised guidance issued on June 10, 2022 related to admissions and quarantine for new admissions and CMS will host a National Stakeholder Call on Tuesday, July 19.

The CDC recently updated its guidance on enhanced barrier precautions​ (EBP) for all health care settings, including nursing homes. The guidance expands to residents that trigger the use of EBP and indicates it should be followed for any resident in the facility with:​​

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) secured an agreement with a nursing facility company that has resulted in a $7.85 million dollar settlement. The DOJ case notes examples of facility staff disenrolling residents from Medicare Advantage (MA) plans back to Original Medicare without the resident’s consent. As part of the settlement agreement the nursing facility organization was required to admit to the specifics of the violations.