CMS Updates Guidelines for Ambulatory Surgical Centers—Can Hospital SOM Be Far Behind?
The changes were published in the June 3 memo QSO-22-16-ASC, which also notes that the last time Appendix L was updated was in late 2019, and that “currently, the online version of Appendix L has several placeholders in the tags that note ‘guidance pending and will be updated in a future release’.”
Why Systemwide Vendor Credentialing Compliance Is Vital for Health System Safety
Within the context of a once-in-a-generation pandemic, healthcare compliance has evolved rapidly. Shifting rules, regulations, and standards have required health system leaders to revisit, reevaluate, and reinvest in their compliance strategies. A robust compliance program helps health systems better address this evolving landscape and better protect their organization from additional risk.
DNV Updates Requirements on Medical Exemptions for COVID-19 Vaccine
Check any medical exemptions from the COVID-19 vaccination that your facility approved before the CMS requirements for hospitals went into effect, says DNV Healthcare officials.
DNV Healthcare Announces Top Management Change
Horine has been with the Houston-based accrediting organization (AO) since his former consulting company, TÜV Healthcare Specialists, was obtained by DNV in 2008, and has led the company for 10 years. Kelly Proctor, CHFM, CHSP, CHOP, DNV Healthcare’s director of operations, will take Horine’s place as president as of May 15, according to a company announcement.
CMS Approves TJC as an AO for Another Three Years
In an announcement scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on May 2, CMS said that TJC made all the changes required of the agency but that “due to travel restrictions and the reprioritization of survey activities brought on by the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Public Health Emergency (PHE), CMS was unable to observe a hospital survey completed by TJC surveyors as part of the application review process, which is one component of the comparability evaluation. Therefore, we are providing TJC with a shorter period of approval.”
IPPS Rule: CMS Proposes New ‘Birthing Friendly’ Designation, Along With PHE-Related CoPs
In an effort to “ensure a nimble and informed response to the next potential pandemic or epidemic, so that we are able to immediately respond to the situation at hand,” CMS is proposing revising hospital Conditions of Participation on infection prevention and control “to extend the current COVID-19 reporting requirements and to establish new reporting requirements for any future PHEs related to a specific infectious disease or pathogen.”
Are You Ready For OSHA’s Wave of New Rules?
OSHA is moving forward with several rulemakings, three of which are healthcare-specific, that could affect many employers. If you’re in the healthcare field, you could be facing a permanent COVID-19 standard based on the agency’s 2021 emergency temporary standard (ETS) and infectious disease and workplace violence standards.
DNV Resumes All Annual Surveys Onsite and Unannounced
Noting that the AO said in January that it was likely to continue the remote annual surveys through at least April, DNV announced through an advisory March 23 that “COVID-19 positivity rates, hospitalizations, and community transmission have dropped significantly, making it much safer to return to onsite survey activities.”
OSHA Ups Inspections at Healthcare Facilities Treating COVID Patients
The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced an enforcement memorandum for a short-term increase in highly focused inspections directed at hospitals and skilled nursing care facilities that treat or handle COVID-19 patients.
No Slow Start for TJC Enforcing Vaccine Requirements
Surveyors with TJC are looking at vaccination rates and will score a hospital if it is not 100% compliant in the states where the newest Conditions of Participation (CoPs) outlining vaccination expectations are already effective.