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Guidance for the Interim Final Rule - Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care Staff Vaccination :

Enforcement Dates:

Within 30 days after memo issuance (by January 27, 2022)

• Policies and procedures are developed and implemented to ensure all provider/supplier staff, regardless of clinical responsibility or patient or resident contact are vaccinated for COVID-19

and

• All staff (100%) have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, have a pending request for or have been granted a qualifying exemption, or are identified as having a temporary delay as recommended by the CDC.

If less than 100% of all staff meet the criteria above, the provider/supplier is non-compliant under the rule and will receive notice of their non-compliance with the 100% standard. A provider/supplier that is above 80% and has a plan to achieve a 100% staff vaccination rate within 60 days would not be subject to additional enforcement action.

Within 60 days after memo issuance (February 26, 2022)

• Policies and procedures are developed and implemented to ensure all provider/supplier staff, regardless of clinical responsibility or patient or resident contact are vaccinated for COVID-19

and

• 100% of staff have received the necessary doses to complete the vaccine series (i.e., one dose of a single-dose vaccine or all doses of a multiple-dose vaccine series) or have been granted a qualifying exemption or are identified as having a temporary delay as recommended by the CDC.

If less than 100% of all staff have received at least one dose of a single-dose vaccine, or all doses of a multiple-dose vaccine series, have been granted a qualifying exemption or are identified as having a temporary delay as recommended by the CDC, the provider/supplier is non-compliant under the rule and will receive notice of their non-compliance with the 100% standard. A provider/supplier that is above 90% and has a plan to achieve a 100% staff vaccination rate within 30 days would not be subject to additional enforcement action.

Federal, state, accreditation organization, and CMS-contracted surveyors will begin surveying for compliance with these requirements as part of initial certification, standard recertification or reaccreditation, and complaint surveys 30 days after the issuance of this memorandum (January 27, 2022).

The guidance in this memorandum does not apply to the following states at this time: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming. Surveyors in these states should not undertake any efforts to implement or enforce the IFC