Urge the Governor and DOH to Reduce HERDS Reporting Requirements
As New York State’s COVID-19 community infection rates decline and vaccination levels increase, LeadingAge NY is calling on the Department of Health (DOH) to revise its COVID-19-related reporting requirements for adult care facilities (ACFs) and nursing homes. The volume and frequency of COVID-19-related data collection through the Health Emergency Response Data System (HERDS) has expanded and evolved over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. We appreciate the importance of data; however, with the conclusion of the public health emergency, it is time for daily reporting requirements to stop. Much of these data are either no longer necessary, not needed on a daily basis, or duplicative of data collected by the federal government.
At this point in the pandemic, the level of information requested is unreasonable. The State should utilize data that are being reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) system and eliminate any duplicative or unnecessary questions. We must start letting go of unnecessary, onerous requirements and allow administrative energy to be directed to resident quality of life, overall recovery from COVID-19, and staff recruitment and retention strategies.
To send a letter to DOH Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, CLICK HERE to download a draft letter in Microsoft Word format. Please fill in the yellow highlighted signature section of the draft letter, copy and paste the entire message into an email, and send it to dohweb@health.ny.gov.