Edition 6: April 2024

How’s the food you’re serving at your facility? Is it palatable? Is it properly prepared? Is it sufficient in quantity and quality? Does it meet the daily nutritional needs of the residents? Would you consider serving the meals prepared to your loved ones?



As a reminder:

1. Residents must be provided a minimum of three (3) nutritionally adequate meals in each 24-hour period. Exception: Unless otherwise directed by the resident's physician or authorized healthcare provider.
2. Suitable food and snacks must be available and offered at no additional cost to the residents in between meals.
3. The same foods should not be repetitively served during each seven (7) day period. Exception: To honor a specific request from a resident.
4. Medically prescribed diets must be followed if you admit or retain a resident on a special diet. Menus must be posted in one or more conspicuous places throughout the facility. Substitutions must be documented as well.

For the protection of our vulnerable adults, Community Residential Care Facilities are to follow CDC's Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendation for the nursing home setting. Recommendations can be found at the provided link.

For Federal Surveys:

Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR) Request:

An IDR is a state process. If requesting an IDR, please complete this form and return it via email to sciidr@dhec.sc.gov. Please note a facility has 10 calendar days once the 2567 is received to request an IDR.

Independent Informal Dispute Resolution (IIDR) Request:

An IIDR cannot be requested until a CMS imposition notice has been received from CMS. Once the imposition notice has been received, a facility has 10 calendar days to request an IIDR.

Civil Money Penalty (CMP) funds are available!

CMPs are monetary penalties imposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) against nursing homes that have failed to maintain compliance with federal requirements. A portion of CMPs collected from nursing homes are returned to the states in which the CMPs were imposed and may be reinvested or used for projects supporting activities that benefit nursing home residents and that protect and improve their quality of care or quality of life.

Learn more & download resources:

• Civil Money Penalty (CMP) Reinvestment Application Resource Guide
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Civil Money Penalty (CMP) Reinvestment General Information
• CMP Reinvestment Application Template

It’s springtime and you know what that means, yes, it’s going to get hot quickly!

Before it gets too hot, it’s a good time to ensure your facilities can maintain the required 72-78 degrees temperatures in CRCFs. Remember that the regulation requires annual HVAC inspections by a licensed technician.

In nursing homes, the annual requirement for an HVAC inspection and temperature is not stated in the regulation, however, the regulation does state that all equipment must be maintained. The maintenance is based on the manufacturer’s recommendations. CMS generally recommends a temperature of 71-81 degrees to maintain a safe, comfortable and homelike environment.

Remember that a loss of HVAC systems must be reported to DHEC and a plan should be in place in the event of an HVAC system failure. Contact the Division of Fire & Life Safety with any questions

Healthcare Quality

S.C. Dept. of Health & Environmental Control

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