Member Resources

Today the Department of Early Education and Care had established a process to approve Exempt Emergency Childcare Programs to serve vulnerable children and the children of families who are required to work to maintain the health, safety and welfare of all commonwealth citizens.

Today, the DPH released guidance on “HCP with Potential Exposure to Patients with COVID-19”. The Department’s guidance is issued in accordance with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Interim U.S. Guidance for Risk Assessment and Public Health Management of Healthcare Personnel with Potential Exposure in a Healthcare Setting to Patients with Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).

Over the past week, it has been incredibly uplifting to witness the extraordinary efforts our long term care facility staff have undertaken to care for residents during the COVID-19 outbreak. With CMS and CDC guidance changing at a rapid pace, all levels of staff have demonstrated their commitment to keeping our residents safe, healthy and emotionally and socially connected to their loved ones and their communities during this uncertain time.

CDC issued today new guidance on the use of masks, gowns and face shields including suggestions on what to do if in crises shortages and when your supplies are exhausted.

In an effort to maintain the availability of first responders and health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Baker today issued an Emergency Order closing all Massachusetts early education and child care centers and the state will instead open exempt emergency child care programs with priority access for children of health care workers.

To: Mass Senior Care Members From: Tara Gregorio, President Re: Guidance to Nursing Homes on Admissions from and Discharges to Hospitals Relating to COVID-19 Date: March 18, 2020 In order to address member concerns related to accepting patients being discharged from the hospital, Mass Senior Care Association has developed “Guidance to Nursing Homes on Admissions from and Discharges to Hospitals Relating To COVID-19” . This guidance is consistent with the current CDC guidance and has been reviewed and discussed with

Memorandum To: Mass Senior Care Assisted Living Members From: Tara Gregorio, President Re: EOEA Provides FAQs to March 16th Guidance for ALRs Date: March 18, 2020 Today, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs (EOEA) released FAQs for assisted living residences, FAQ #1 – “Visitor” Access, Congregate Dining, Group Activities. This memo is the first set of FAQs by EOEA addressing the March 16th Revised Guidance for Assisted Living Residences – Restrict Visitors, Activities and Communal Dining , and includes answers

MassHealth has issued updated LTSS Provider Information guidance related to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) which outlines certain flexibilities that MassHealth is implementing. The website address is https://www.mass.gov/doc/ltss-provider-updates-for-covid-19/download.

On March 16th, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs released revised guidance for assisted living residences,Amended Assisted Living Residence Operators Guidance and Policies and Procedures to Protect Residents, Facilities, and Services during the COVID-19 Outbreak. The amended guidance includes changes to restrict all visitors except for certain compassionate care situations, eliminate group activities and cease communal dining.

On March 14th, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued two waivers to both the 3-Day Stay and Spell of Illness requirements retroactive to March 1, 2020 and in place for 60 days with the option for renewal as needed.

There are important conference calls for long term care facilities. CDC will be having a conference call on Tuesday, March 17th at 2pm. Massachusetts DPH will hold a weekly conference calls for nursing homes and rest homes.

Memorandum To: Mass Senior Care Human Resources Committee From: Tara Gregorio, President  Re: Greater Boston YMCA Announces Support Services Date: March 15, 2020 As a follow up to Friday’s brainstorming call regarding child care services for nursing facility staff, we wanted to make you aware that the Greater Boston YMCA has announced that, in response to school closures and for families who utilize their before and after school programs, they will provide day-long programs and meals to for children

Over the weekend, AHCA released Communal Dining Guidance in response to CMS’s S&C Memo Guidance for Infection Control and Prevention of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Nursing Homes (REVISED) dated March 13, 2020. AHCA has reviewed this guidance with the CDC and it is based on their continuing assessment of the COVID-19 outbreak. We recognize the enormous burden being placed on facilities and this, like most guidance needs to be assessed and implemented on a facility-by-facility basis.

Mass Senior Care is updating members on Massachusetts' COVID-19 Command Center, CMS' revised visitor guidance and CMS released guidance on waiving the Medicare 3-day rule, as hospitals work diligently to increase their surge capacity.

At this afternoon’s Press Conference at the White House, Seema Verma, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that ALL nursing homes should restrict all visitors and allow only essential personnel into nursing facilities. If you have not implemented this restriction, we strongly urge you to do so immediately! We will continue to review the order and send additional details shortly.

Mass Senior Care is strongly urging all nursing facilities to immediately limit visitation in your facility to essential visits only. We strongly recommend that you review your Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP) as well as surge plans for your facility. This virus is dangerous to our residents and to prevent it from entering our facilities all people who are not needed to meet residents’ needs or keep operations going should be asked to not enter.

This afternoon, the the Department of Public Health released updated COVID-19 related guidance for long-term care facilities in the Commonwealth. We urge each member to review this important guidance and immediately begin restricting visitors in communities with “COVID-19 community spread” and limiting visitors to essential visits only, if your “facility is in a county or is adjacent to other counties where a COVID-19 case has occurred.” The Department’s guidance aligns with CMS’ March 9th recommendation that was released earlier this week and is already being implemented by many member facilities.

On March 9th, CMS released S&C: QSO-20-14-NH Guidance for Infection Control and Prevention of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in nursing homes (REVISED). This memorandum includes revised guidance and expanded recommendations for limiting visitors and individuals in nursing facilities. Mass Senior Care Association is in contact with the Executive Office of Health and Human Services and has strongly urged them to issue guidance for nursing facilities to protect the safety of residents and staff. If you have questions, please contact Helen

Due to the growing concerns presented by COVID-19 (the coronavirus) and out of an abundance of caution for nursing facility staff, Mass Senior Care Association is postponing educational programs scheduled in March 2020. We are attempting to reschedule for a later date and will keep all registrants updated once we have a new date. The following programs will be postponed: PDPM SIX MONTHS LATER: THE MASSACHUSETTS EXPERIENCE (March 12, 2020) MDS 3.0 3-Day Competency Program (March 16-18, 2020) Strategies for

Mass Senior Care has a dedicated page on our website to share important memos and resources with all members about coronavirus, officially named COVID-19. Updated guidance from Massachusetts Department of Public Health and CMS are also available on the page. As concerns arise with COVID-19, Mass Senior Care members should visit the website daily for the latest information.

This week the Worcester Telegram & Gazette highlighted the nursing facility crisis in its article, "Residential care at a crossroads,” and reported on the tremendous impact Medicaid funding has on the workforce and its effect on the state’s nursing facilities.

State budget deliberations are intensifying, and Mass Senior Care is encouraging members to contact their State Representatives and State Senators to urge them to make nursing facility care a top priority in FY 2021. Lawmakers are currently meeting with House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz and Senate Ways and Means Chairman Michael Rodrigues to discuss and submit their FY 2021 budget priorities.

AHCA/NCAL has a dedicated page on their website to share important resources with all members of the long-term care community about COVID-19. As concerns arise with the emerging coronavirus, officially named COVID-19, AHCA is working nationally with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to ensure our members receive necessary supplies and guidance to prevent the spread of this disease. Long-term care providers should visit the website daily for the latest information.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued three new Quality, Safety and Oversight memos regarding COVID-19 - two apply to nursing homes and a third to hospitals. We strongly encourage you to review the following memos.

Mass Senior Care is encouraging nursing facility staff, residents, family members and vendors to join us for State House Visibility Day on Tuesday, March 24th at 11:00am which will coincide with the Joint Committee on Way and Means Budget hearing at Gardner Auditorium in the Massachusetts State House.

AHCA is providing members with a resource on tips for tackling the most common Life Safety Code (NFPA 101- 2012 edition) and Health Care Facilities Code (NFPA 99-2012 edition) deficiencies and suggestions on how to correct possible deficiencies in your facilities. These tips were developed by members of AHCA’s Life Safety Committee based on deficiencies frequency cited across the country.

Licensed nursing home administrators are required to complete 40 hours of continuing education (CEUs) between July 1, even year and June 30, next even year, making June 30, 2020 the deadline for completing the CEU requirement.

Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) informed the DPH MA MOLST Advisory Subcommittee that they received the Subcommittee’s recommendation to adopt the National POLST form and process for use in Massachusetts, and as a result, is in process of developing a multi-year plan to move from MA MOLST to National POLST.

The Department of Public Health is communicating guidance through their dedicated COVID-19 website as well as the DPH Nursing Home Listserv and the Health and Homeland Alert Network (HHAN).

In an effort to keep MSCA members updated on the latest guidance regarding the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), below are infection control recommendations we encourage you to implement in order to protect your residents, staff and visitors. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continue to closely monitor the emergence of respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The risk to Massachusetts residents currently remains low.

Mass Senior Care and provider members having been at the State House meeting with legislators from across the state to urge their support for quality nursing home care. Closing the Medicaid funding gap would allow facilities to make critically needed investments to enhance resident care, offer competitive staff wages and expand the direct care workforce.

National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care and Quality Assurance Performance Improvement will host a call on Tuesday, March 3 from 1:30 to 3 pm ET to discuss the CMS toolkit resources available for nursing home providers.

Massachusetts Senior Care Association is excited to participate in the upcoming observance of National Skilled Nursing Care Week (NSNCW), which will be held May 10-16, 2020.

There are limited spaces left for the March 12th PDPM 6 Months Later: The Massachusetts Experience seminar being held at the Boston Marriott Newton in Newton.

Our national association, the American Health Care Association (AHCA), has provided the following note regarding some claims submitted under PDPM to report information previously missed or that was entered incorrectly in the previous submission, have created problems. This may result in unexpected payment adjustments for the SNF PPS Part A claim, even when the initially submitted claim was paid correctly.

Join your colleagues from across the state at our 2020 Spring Conference & Trade Show on Tuesday, April 28th at the DCU Center in Worcester. This year's conference will feature timely topics, “From PDPM to Five-Star – A 20/20 Perspective” and “Cyber Security: Offense Always Wins, Defense Always Loses”.

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) has announced that the 2020 National Skilled Nursing Care Week (NSNCW) Planning Guide and Product Catalog is now available online here.

EOHHS’s OneCare Learning Activities will be holding two seminars in March on an overview of the state of affordable housing, in Massachusetts, and useful information about housing programs and supports available in the state.

Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in the 2020 MassMAP Annual Education Sessions. This year’s full-day program will consist of an education component in the morning and a tabletop exercise in the afternoon.

Hamel-Lydon Chapel & Cremation Service of Massachusetts (Hamel-Lydon) is offering ten (10) $500 awards to candidates who are home health aides, hospice care aides or certified nursing assistants. Qualifying candidates are invited to apply for the award.

Skilled nursing and assisted living centers provide care for vulnerable people who can become critically ill when steps are not taken to reduce the risk of waterborne diseases such as Legionnaire’s. Effective water management programs are mandated for nursing facilities by CMS and highly recommended for assisted living facilities by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a best practice.

The MassHealth Provider Access Improvement Grant Program (PAIGP) aims to help eligible MassHealth Fee-for-Service providers increase access to healthcare and improve outcomes for patients with disabilities or for whom English is not a primary language, through the purchase of accessible medical diagnostic equipment, communication devices, and other resources.

Mass Senior Care is excited to announce its partnership with Dark Cubed, an innovative cybersecurity SaaS firm located in Alexandria Virginia. Dark Cubed provides enterprise grade automated network monitoring and blocking at a fraction of the price of other solutions.

There are several significant developments impacting the current calendar year (CY) 2020 Medicare physician fee schedule (PFS) policies and rates that for Part B physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT) as well as speech-language pathology (SLP) services.

EOHHS has posted online for electronic filing the FY 2020 Direct Care Add On Interim Compliance Form. Facilities are required to complete an interim Compliance Report no later than March 2nd.