Articles and Resources of Interest

• New Cybersecurity Essentials for Long Term Care Providers Webinar Now Available to AHCA/NCAL Members
• Vaccine FAQs
• Testing Vendors
• Testing FAQs

Legislative and Agency Corner

• Provider Relief Fund FAQs for Vaccine Distribution
• Five-Star Survey and Quality Ratings Will Be Unfrozen on January 27

2021 Health Care Observances

January 2021 marks, among other observances, National Glaucoma Awareness Month and National Volunteer Blood Donor Month.  The 2021 Healthcare Observances Calendar can be found here.

Happy Thanksgiving from AHCA/NCAL

 

CMS Releases Alert Regarding Holidays

On November 18,​ CMS released an alert regarding holiday visitation. During the holidays, facilities, residents, and visitors should continue to follow the guidelines for visitation and adhere to the core principles of infection prevention, such as remaining six feet or more apart, wearing a face covering at all times, and limiting the number of visitors in the nursing home at any one time. Families, residents, and providers need to work together to take precautions during the holidays to help reduce the risk of spread while supporting family and resident engagement as much as possible using these core infection prevention practices.  More details can be found here.

Resources to Help 2021 Quality Award Applicants

The AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program has created free resources to help 2021 Bronze, Silver and Gold Award applicants.  Members are encouraged to access The Criteria Series, several videos covering application categories and technical writing to ensure a smooth writing process.  Completing a successful application takes time to prepare.  Don’t wait.  Gather your team and start today.  More details can be found here. 

HUD Section 232 Program and COVID Webinar

AhcancalED hosted a webinar last week with HUD titled Section 232 Program Overview and Matters Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic. This webinar provided a brief overview of HUD’s Office of Residential Care Facilities (ORCF) and various issues brought on by the pandemic. It included a discussion of relief options, financial treatment of loans and grants and changes in ORCF policy to adapt to the crisis. A recording of the webinar can be found here.​​