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By Beverley Laubert, National Ombudsman
Program Coordinator, ACL
In the midst of the holiday season, the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) delivered good news
for residents of nursing homes across the country:
Visitation is now allowed for all residents at all times.
Living in a long-term care facility, whether
for short-term or long-term care, comes with many rights such
as the right to receive quality care and services, to
engage in activities of choice, and to receive visitors.
The value of social connection with family
and friends has been highlighted during the COVID-19
pandemic as visits were interrupted. It is clear that
connection with friends and family are vital for residents’
quality of life. Following the infection prevention and
control guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), CMS has gradually updated visitation
guidance. Guidance released in November states:
While previously acceptable during the
public health emergency, facilities can no longer limit
frequency and length of visits for residents, the number of
visitors, or require advance scheduling of visits.
Of course, visits must be safe for all
parties, especially at this time. That’s why CMS
established several core principles of COVID-19 infection
prevention to support safe visits. Visitors should expect
to be screened for COVID-19 exposure, practice good hand
hygiene, and wear a mask when required. Facilities should
clean often, ensure staff wear appropriate personal
protective equipment, and post information to remind visitors
of necessary precautions. Residents and staff should be
tested for COVID-19 to comply with separate CMS testing
guidance. To further clarify expectations, CMS issued Frequently
Asked Questions this morning that are a helpful
resource for facilities, residents, and visitors.
In addition to those core principles, an
important factor in sustained visitation is vaccination
against COVID-19, including having a vaccine booster dose.
CMS now publishes vaccination data for each nursing home.
Nationally, an average of 87% of residents and 77.3% of
staff per facility are vaccinated. However, there is a wide
range among individual nursing facilities. On this CMS
COVID-19 nursing home data page, below the national
numbers, is a link to a list of all nursing homes and their
vaccination rates, among other information.
ACL’s Office of Long-Term Care Ombudsman
Programs collects data from State Long-Term Care Ombudsman
programs through the National Ombudsman Reporting System.
Ombudsman data provides a rich source of information about
the issues that residents, families, and others report to
Ombudsman representatives for resolution. Between October
2019 and September 2020, Ombudsman programs received a
dramatic increase (485%) in complaints about visitation in
nursing homes compared to the previous year. This increase
is even more remarkable because overall complaints dropped
during this period as Ombudsman programs stopped in-person
visits to facilities in order to protect residents.
CMS guidance affects nursing facilities
certified to receive Medicare or Medicaid payment for resident
care, and Ombudsman program data indicates that this issue
is not limited to nursing homes. Visitation complaints also
increased in residential care communities not regulated by
CMS. While many states extended federal guidance to those
homes, visitation restrictions varied around the country.
Ombudsman programs are committed to supporting residents of
all types of long-term care facilities.
When Ombudsman representatives returned to
in-person advocacy, residents welcomed them with happiness
and relief. Likewise, reunited families and friends are
experiencing a more joyful holiday season.
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