Federal waivers set to expire June 6, 2022.

Under federal regulation F888, CMS is requiring all nursing homes to complete the Staff Vaccination Matrix upon entry of the survey team.

Waivers of in-person physician visits, prohibitions on physician delegation, in-person resident meetings, QAPI scope, discharge planning information sharing, and clinical record sharing expired on May 7^th. The CNA training and certification waiver will expire on June 6^th, along with the CNA in-service training waiver, paid feeding assistant training waiver, and various Life Safety Code and physical environment waivers.

The revised guidance includes updates to the general memorandum applicable to all covered providers and provider-specific attachments. They clarify survey expectations, repeat surveys, and additional precautions for unvaccinated personnel.

The waivers will be terminated in two groups – the first group will terminate on May 7, 2022, and the second group on June 6, 2022. The TNA waiver will end on June 6^th, and TNAs will have four months from June 6^th to become certified. Other waivers that will terminate include waivers involving physician delegation and telehealth in lieu of in-person physician visits, resident group meetings, in-service training, certain Life Safety Code and physical environment requirements, and more.

The new guidance memoranda replace the term “vaccinated” with “up-to-date with all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses” and delete the term “unvaccinated.” This change has implications for in-room visits with roommates, staff screening testing, and quarantine requirements.