NEWS ALERT
April 21, 2020
Here is a summary of recent Centers
for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) actions taken in response to the
2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), as part of the ongoing White House Task
Force efforts. To keep up with the important work the Task Force is doing
in response to COVID-19, click here www.coronavirus.gov. For
information specific to CMS, please visit the CMS
News Room and Current
Emergencies Website. CMS updates these resources on an
ongoing basis throughout the day; the information below is current as of
April 21, 2020 at 12:00 p.m.
CMS
Issues Recommendations to Re-Open Health Care Systems in Areas with Low
Incidence of COVID-19
As the United States continues to
face the unprecedented public health emergency from the COVID-19 pandemic,
the tide is turning and some areas throughout the country are seeing a
decline in cases. As states and localities begin to stabilize, CMS is
issuing guidance on providing essential non-COVID-19 care to patients
without symptoms of COVID-19 in regions with low and stable incidence of
COVID-19. This is part of Phase 1 in the Trump Administration’s Guidelines
for Opening Up America Again. The recommendations update earlier
guidance provided by CMS on limiting non-essential surgeries and medical
procedures.
Trump
Administration Announces New Nursing Homes COVID-19 Transparency Effort
CMS announced new
regulatory requirements that will require nursing homes to
inform residents, their families, and their representatives of COVID-19 cases
in their facilities. In addition, as part of President Trump’s Opening Up
America, CMS will now require nursing homes to report cases of COVID-19
directly to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This
information must be reported in accordance with existing privacy
regulations and statute. This measure augments longstanding requirements
for reporting infectious disease to State and local health departments. CMS
will also require nursing homes to fully cooperate with CDC surveillance efforts
around COVID-19 spread.
Trump
Administration Champions Reporting of COVID-19 Clinical Trial Data through
Quality Payment Program, Announces New Clinical Trials Improvement
Activity
CMS is encouraging clinicians who participate in
the Quality Payment Program (QPP), such as physicians, physician
assistants, nurse practitioners, and others, to contribute to scientific
research and evidence to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinicians may now
earn credit in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), a
performance-based track of QPP that incentivizes quality and value, for participation
in a clinical trial and reporting clinical information by attesting to the
new COVID-19 Clinical Trials improvement activity. This action will provide
vital data to help drive improvement in patient care and develop innovative
best practices to manage the spread of COVID-19 within communities.
RHC
& FQHCs: Telehealth and Virtual Communications Flexibilities During
COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
To support Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Federally
Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), and their patients, Congress and CMS made
changes to requirements and payments during the COVID-19 Public Health
Emergency, including:
- New payment for telehealth
services, including how to bill Medicare
- Expansion of virtual
communication services
- Revision of home health agency
shortage requirement for visiting nursing services
- Consent for care management and
virtual communication services
- Accelerated/advance payments
CMS
Amends Certain Activities Related to the Health Insurance Exchange Quality
Rating System, QHP Enrollee Experience Survey, and Quality Improvement
Strategy
CMS is easing burden on Qualified
Health Plans (QHPs) during the Public Health Emergency. CMS directed plans
that are eligible to report for the Quality Rating System and the Quality
Improvement Strategy programs to discontinue collecting clinical quality
measure data. Eligible QHPs can discontinue reporting in June 2020 for
display on Exchange websites for the 2021 Open Enrollment period. CMS will
continue to accept QHP Enrollee survey data submissions for this year,
given that the survey administration is already underway.
CMS
Approves Additional State Medicaid Waivers and Amendments to Give States
Flexibility to Address Coronavirus Pandemic
CMS has approved 53 COVID-related emergency waivers, 39 state
amendments, 16 COVID-related Medicaid Disaster Amendments and one CHIP
COVID-related Disaster Amendment in record time. States are using a toolkit
CMS developed to expedite the application and approval of
Medicaid state waivers and State Plan Amendments.
CMS recently approved an additional COVID-related emergency
Medicaid waiver for Wisconsin, delivering urgent regulatory relief to
ensure the state can quickly and effectively care for its most vulnerable
citizens. CMS also recently approved COVID-19 related Medicaid Disaster
Amendments that bring relief to Guam, Louisiana, Maryland, and Minnesota.
These approvals help to ensure that states have the tools they need to
combat COVID-19 through a wide variety of state plan flexibilities. CMS
continues to authorize amendments to ensure emergency flexibilities in
programs that care for the elderly and people with disabilities, including
most recently for the District of Columbia, Florida, Mississippi, Nebraska,
Utah, and Virginia. These approved flexibilities support President Trump’s
commitment to a COVID-19 response that is locally executed, state managed,
and federally supported.
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Contact: CMS
Media Relations
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