In an October 4th op-ed for Inside Sources, Tara Gregorio, President of the Massachusetts Senior Care Association and Mark Parkinson, President & CEO of the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living write "For long-term care professionals, COVID-19 has been especially challenging."

As part of its overall 2021 nursing home rate and restructuring package, EOHHS today announced via a DPH memo that, effective immediately, the Determination of Need Program (DoN) Program will accept applications for new long-term care beds if the proposed project meets all of the following five criteria.

The AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program is pleased to announce the approval of an automatic one-year extension for recipients in their third year of renewal. The Program is making this extension in order to be supportive of members during these challenging times and offering them the opportunity to maintain their active status even if they are not able to apply in 2021.

Long term care facility (LTCF) users who wish to gain full access to the NHSN surveillance modules, various analytic tools, and data reports must complete the enhanced security clearance known as Secure Access Management Services (SAMS) Level 3. Centers who are only reporting to the COVID-19 module in NHSN likely only have a Level 1 security clearance. Users who complete the identify verification process will be migrated from Level 1 to Level 3 SAMS access and will be issued a SAMS grid care for a more secure NHSN user experience.

The ahcancalED Infection Preventionist Specialized Training (IPCO) is on sale through October 31, 2020. Registrants can save $50 off the regular registration price this month by using promo code IPCO2020 when they register.

AHCA/NCAL has two new online programs in conjunction with Healthcare Academy®. Both programs incorporate a digital competency platform to allow for documentation of live skills demonstration. The digital checklists included in these programs have been designed by industry experts using evidence-based practices to help organizations develop competent and confident staff.