11/06/2020

Today's COVID-19 Report: Friday, November 6, 2020

Friday, November 6, 2020

Here are the latest need-to-know updates for Friday, November 6 regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In Today's Report

• Deadline TODAY to enroll in federal COVID-19 vaccination "Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program"
• Deadline TODAY to enter Phase 3 applications
• DeWine names new leadership team to ODH
• CMS issues guidance on hospice election addendum
• LeadingAge Need to Know

Deadline TODAY to enroll in federal COVID-19 vaccination "Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program":  Administration urges enrollment

The DeWine Administration reached out to LeadingAge Ohio yesterday to express concern that just 500 of Ohio’s 900+ nursing homes had registered for the Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program.  If you haven’t already done so, enroll in the federal COVID-19 vaccination “Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program” TODAY, as we understand that the CDC is working all weekend to compile the data received through this registration process.

Through the program, CVS and Walgreens will provide and administer COVID-19 vaccines to your residents with no out-of-pocket costs. If you do not enroll in this program, you will need to develop an alternative plan to administer the COVID-19 vaccine to your residents when a vaccine becomes available. See the below information from the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) with more information about the program including how to enroll.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Defense (DOD) have announced agreements with CVS and Walgreens to provide and administer COVID-19 vaccines to residents of long-term care facilities (LTCF) nationwide with no out-of-pocket costs. LTCF residents may be part of the prioritized groups for initial COVID-19 vaccination efforts until there are enough doses available for every American who wishes to be vaccinated. LeadingAge Ohio reached out to ODH this week to better understand how this federal program will align with Ohio’s vaccination plan. Interim Director Lance Himes confirmed that ODH is encouraging providers to enroll in the federal program, while Ohio continues to refine its own plan.  

The "Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program" provides complete management of the COVID-19 vaccination process. This means LTCF residents will be able to safely and efficiently get vaccinated once vaccines are available and recommended for them. LTCF staff who have not been previously vaccinated will also be able to get vaccinated. It will also minimize the burden on LTCF sites and jurisdictional health departments of vaccine handling, administration, and fulfilling reporting requirements.

LTCFs are being asked to enroll in the program or opt out and indicate an alternate plan for vaccinating residents. Nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities should sign up via the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) and all other facilities (Assisted Living, Life Plan Communities, Independent Living, HUD 202 properties, and more) via an online sign up form. Question 2 of this FAQ on the partnership provides a link for each provider type.  .

The program is:

• Free of charge to facilities.
• Available for residents in all long-term care settings, including skilled nursing facilities (SNF), nursing homes, assisted living facilities, residential care homes, and adult family homes.
• Available to all remaining LTCF staff members who have not been previously vaccinated for COVID-19 (e.g., through satellite, temporary, or off-site clinics).
• Available in most rural areas that may not have an easily accessible pharmacy.
• HHS is using multiple authorities to ensure appropriate reimbursement for these services and that no American being vaccinated for COVID-19 will have to pay out-of-pocket.

Deadline TODAY to enter Phase 3 applications

The United States Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) hosted a last-minute call on Thursday primarily for Assisted Living providers but on the topic of clarifying issues related to Phase 2 and Phase 3 applications. The deadline for initiating applications for Phase 3 relief funds is today at 11:59pm. HHS clarified that applications do not have to be completed, but that any applications completed by the deadline would be prioritized for processing.

The session was recorded. Nick Uehlecke at HHS and his colleages from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) fielded numerous questions from providers. Many providers described being “stuck” or in a holding pattern between Phase 2 and 3, particularly related to TIN validation. If providers (e.g., ALs) have applied for Phase 2 or Phase 3 and are still awaiting their TIN to be validated, HRSA advised they should NOT cancel their application and start over with a Phase 3 application, this will NOT speed things up.

HHS also encouraged members who have been waiting several weeks or months without TIN validation or payment from Phase 2 to submit their information to their association. For LeadingAge, the point person for inquiries is Nicole Fallon at nfallon@leadingage.org, who is setting up a process for collecting necessary information.

DeWine names new leadership team to ODH

During his daily press conference yesterday, Governor Mike DeWine announced changes in the leadership of the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), the agency responsible for leading Ohio’s pandemic response. ODH has been without a director since Director Amy Acton resigned in June amid protests of business closures.

The new team includes one new face and several reassignments from other agencies:

• Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff: Former Senior VP and Chief Medical Officer at Ohio Health
• Director, Stephanie McCloud: Former Administrator of the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
• Senior Deputy, Lance Himes: Former ODH Interim Director
• Chief of Staff, Kathleen Madden: Former Assistant Director at the Ohio Office of Budget and Management
  

In his comments, the Governor likened our current stage in the pandemic to “halftime,” saying it is time to bring in a new team to mount an offense. The change was announced on a day when Ohio’s daily COVID-19 count hit a new record of 4,961.

CMS issues guidance on hospice election addendum

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released Transmittal 10437: Manual Updates Related to the Hospice Election Statement and the Implementation of the Election Statement Addendum today. This contains updates to the Medicare Benefit Policy manual and to business requirements related to the hospice election statement and implementation of the election statement addendum in accordance with the FY2020 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update final rule. The effective date for these changes was October 1, 2020 (the start of the fiscal year) and the implementation date for this change request is December 9, 2020.

Questions related to the hospice addendum may be directed to Anne Shelley at ashelley@leadingageohio.org.

LeadingAge Need to Know: COVID-19 – November 6, 2020

LeadingAge shares the latest coronavirus news and resources with members twice each weekday. This morning's update featured a reminder about the upcoming Annual Meeting.

Check out the full report here.

Questions

Please send all questions to COVID19@leadingageohio.org. Additionally, members are encouraged to visit the LeadingAge Ohio COVID-19 Working Group facebook group to pose questions to peers and share best practices. LeadingAge is continuing its daily calls for all members.  To participate in these daily online updates, members should register here.  

LeadingAge Ohio is working to ensure that the information in our daily alerts, on our website, and all coronavirus-related communications is as accurate as possible. However, LeadingAge Ohio makes no guarantees about the accuracy of the information.