The Department of Health (DOH) has created a COVID-19 Infection Prevention Best Practices for Memory Care Units document and is providing it as a resource. The document recognizes that resident and staff of long term care facilities are disproportionately affected by COVID-19, and that memory care poses unique challenges for infection prevention practices. The document contains suggested best practices based on memory care-facility specific experiences.

All skilled nursing providers are invited to join the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on August 25, 2021, at 1 PM PST for a stakeholder call. The call will be hosted via Zoom, and we encourage you to register early if you wish to participate. During this call, providers will be given a recap of recent announcements as well as an update on the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). Register in advance today.

Washington State has PPE available to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This supply is available to help long term care facilities, nursing programs, schools, and others. The new PPE website contains information about how to request PPE, instructions, sample documents, and where to submit your requests. There is also a new Q&A section is also new and very helpful. Click here to learn more about the state's PPE stockpile and how to access it if you need it.

An article published by The New York Times this morning announces the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for people 16 and older, making it the first to move beyond emergency use status in the United States. Pfizer presented the FDA with data from 44,000 clinical trial participants in the United States, the European Union, Turkey, South Africa, and South America. Read the full article here. In addition, According to the FDA's announcement, the vaccine will “now be marketed as Comirnaty, for the prevention of COVID-19 disease in individuals 16 years of age and older. The vaccine also continues to be available under emergency use authorization (EUA), including for individuals 12 through 15 years of age and for the administration of a third dose in certain immunocompromised individuals.”

Following an announcement from President Biden this week that all nursing home staff will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in a forthcoming regulation, the nursing home industry warned about the potential impact on the profession’s already challenging workforce situation. Industry leaders are deeply concerned that it may cause a mass exodus from the nursing home profession, leaving frail seniors without the caregivers and access to care they need. 

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) should use a thoughtful approach in developing the policy—one that focuses on retaining current staff members. The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) sent a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, encouraging the Administration to strengthen the policy by including all health care settings and provide resources to support providers in their efforts. The letter highlights:

Nursing home providers are committed to increasing vaccination rates, but we can’t do it alone. COVID-19 has exacerbated long-standing workforce challenges in nursing homes, and a vaccine mandate focused solely on this sector would push too many caregivers out of their jobs and facilities to their breaking point. Our nation’s most vulnerable deserve full protection from the virus, but they also deserve access to the long term care they need. Federal officials must take a comprehensive and supportive approach. Read more.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a plan to deliver booster shots for individuals who have been vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine or the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. This comes on the heels of an announcement by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to allow for the use of an additional dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine in certain immunocompromised individuals.  

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) has published a blog post with questions and answers. Here are the questions:

In the blog post, you will find answers and other resources addressing these questions.

The webinar hosted by the American Health Care Association, LeadingAge, Argentum, and others on August 19 is now available online. Click here for the fact sheet and to view the webinar as it was presented.

WHCA continues to post resources and information as it becomes available on our website. If you have questions or need additional information, please call the WHCA office at (800) 562-6170.