July regulatory roundup covers CMS rule, emergency preparedness, Zika and more

Hospitals get time to prepare for CMS rule

FACILITIES // The Joint Commission says hospitals will have until November to prepare for new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements, the American Society for Healthcare Engineering recently reported to its members. CMS will begin surveying health care facilities on its new Conditions of Participation (CoPs) on Nov. 7. The new CoPs adopt the 2012 editions of NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, and NFPA 99, Health Care Facilities Code. When CMS published its new CoPs in a federal rule in May, the effective date was July 5. However, the Joint Commission issued a memo on June 10 stating the new CMS survey deadline of Nov. 7, noting that this allows health care providers and suppliers more time to assess their facilities for compliance.

Health care on path toward preparedness

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT // The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released its 2016 National Preparedness Report, which evaluates emergency preparedness among individuals, communities, private and nonprofit sectors, faith-based organizations and all levels of government. FEMA reported on key findings in five areas: prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery. Regarding health care and public health sectors, the report states, “Planning; public health, health care and emergency medical services; and risk and disaster resilience assessment are three core capabilities in which the nation has developed acceptable levels of performance for critical tasks, but that face performance declines if not maintained and updated to address emerging challenges.”

CDC releases toolkit for Legionella risk

ENGINEERING // The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a new toolkit to prevent Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks. The toolkit builds off of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers’ ASHRAE 188, Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems. The toolkit provides an easy-to-understand interpretation of ASHRAE Standard 188, as well as worksheets, checklists and scenarios of common water-quality problems. It also contains special sections and considerations for health care facilities.

ASPR issues Zika resources for health care

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT // The Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response has issued resources to help health care providers and coalitions plan for a real or potential Zika virus outbreak. “A Zika outbreak is unlikely to result in large numbers of acutely ill patients needing simultaneous care, making surge planning for Zika unique from that of conventional disaster events, including those with an infectious disease component (e.g., pandemic influenza, Ebola),” the resource guide states. “In contrast, the known and suspected complications of Zika infection are likely to disproportionately affect certain patient populations, most notably pregnant women and their developing fetuses. Treatment of these complications will likely require the participation of health care specialties and social services that may have limited experience with preparedness activities.”

House members call for flexible payment rule

FINANCE // A bipartisan group of 235 House members urged the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to provide flexibility in the implementation of the Medicare payment reductions for new off-campus hospital outpatient departments (HOPD) under the Bipartisan Budget Act to protect patients’ access to care. Specifically, they said the site-neutral payment reductions under Section 603 of the Act should not affect existing off-campus HOPDs that relocate, rebuild, change ownership or types of services, and should not affect services provided by a dedicated emergency department. They also urged the agency’s regional offices to use the rule of “reasonable proximity” when evaluating on-campus status. 

OSHA issues final workplace reporting rule

WORKFORCE // The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in May issued a final rule on recording and reporting work injuries and illnesses. The rule is meant to improve tracking of workplace mishaps and requires employers in certain industries, including health care, to electronically submit injury and illness data to OSHA that they are already required to keep under existing regulations. The frequency and content of the reporting varies according to the size and industry of the employer. OSHA plans to post the data in a publicly accessible online forum but will take precautions that information won’t identify individuals. The new requirements will go into effect Aug. 10, with phased-in data submissions beginning in 2017.