Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Flu season is here, and that means we all need to take the necessary precautions to make sure we stay healthy. CDC is here to help you do just that. NHSN offers two new features for long term care facilities to track weekly influenza vaccination data…… Continue reading Upcoming NHSN Webinars for LTC Facilities

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On September 23, 2020, the Senate Finance Committee released a 67-page report.  The purpose of the report is summed up in the Introduction and the last paragraph of the Executive Summary: This report discusses the findings of the majority staff of the United States Senate Committee…… Continue reading COVID-19 in Nursing Homes: What Went Wrong and Next Steps

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare If you missed this very informative September 24, 2020 ASPR TRACIE webinar, the on-demand recording and handout (81 slides) for COVID-19: Optimizing Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment and Supplies is now available. The slide deck provides the link to the recording at the top of the title…… Continue reading COVID-19: Optimizing Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment and Supplies

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare CMS has updated the NH COVID-19 data for Week Ending 9/13/2020. This was the resident case and death counts for the previous data release – week of 9/6/2020:

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On Monday, September 21, 2020, CMS provided Holiday Celebrations guidance that is pertinent to our communities at large as well as to those individuals that enter/work in LTC facilities and other congregate living communities. “As many people in the United States begin to plan for fall…… Continue reading Upcoming Holiday Celebrations and COVID-19

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare AHCA/NCAL has posted information regarding the availability of Abbott BinaxNOW™ Resources.  The date of the post is September 23, 2020. Skilled nursing facilities and assisted living communities who are receiving the Abbott BinaxNOW™ test kits can refer to the following resources from Abbott: Contact Information:    ​To report…… Continue reading Abbott BinaxNOW™ Resources Available

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On Monday, September 21, 2020, AHCA/NCAL posted a blog entitled CMS to Update County Data for COVID-19 Testing Weekly and Allow Use of State or County Data in Updated Methodology (underlining added by me to emphasize CMS changes): “The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) has…… Continue reading CMS Updates County Data for COVID-19 Testing Weekly Now

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The latest version of this toolkit was posted yesterday: Version 10 – Toolkit on State Actions to Mitigate COVID-19 Prevalence in Nursing Homes.  This version is 176 pages and updates individual state actions found in all previous versions. If you aren’t familiar with this toolkit or…… Continue reading Version 10 – Toolkit on State Actions to Mitigate COVID-19 Prevalence in NHs Posted

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Updated county positivity rates are now available: Week Ending September 17, 2020.  Archived county positivity data is found here. Ten Clinical Tips on COVID-19 for Healthcare Providers Involved in Patient Care for Healthcare Workers was updated by CDC on September 16, 2020. Areas covered include: Treatment…… Continue reading Recent COVID-19 Guidance/Information Updates

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Today (September 18, 2020), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released information to help states, nursing facilities, and other providers better understand the sources of Medicare and Medicaid coverage and payment for COVID-19 testing, including a flow chart detailing testing coverage for nursing facility…… Continue reading CMS Releases Additional Information on Coverage and Payment Information for COVID-19 Testing in Nursing Facilities