Today, CMS provided recommendations [cl.exct.net] on a nursing home phased reopening for states. The recommendations cover the following items:
- Recommendations for testing residents and staff
- Dedicated space for cohorting residents with COVID-19
- Criteria for relaxing certain restrictions and mitigating the risk of resurgence
- Visitation and service considerations
- Restoration of survey activities
The guidance encourages state leaders to collaborate with the state survey agency and local health departments to decide how these criteria should be implemented. Given the critical importance in limiting COVID-19 exposure in nursing homes, CMS recommends that decisions on relaxing restrictions be made with careful review of the following facility-level, community, and state factors:
- Baseline test of all residents, weekly testing of all staff, practicing social distancing, and universal source control for residents and visitors (e.g., face coverings)
- Status of COVID-19 cases in the local community
- Status of COVID-19 cases in nursing homes
- Adequate staffing
- Access to adequate personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Local hospital capacity
Read the press release [cl.exct.net], guidance [cl.exct.net] and FAQs [cl.exct.net] from CMS.