CMS Issues Details on Vaccine Mandate’s End
By Kimberly Marselas
On May 31, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule that will end the COVID-19 vaccination mandate for healthcare workers by early August. The final rule, slated for publication in the Federal Register on June 5, will withdraw the mandate for initial COVID-19 vaccines for all staff at long-term care facilities, which went into effect in January 2022. CMS attributes the slowdown in COVID-related deaths in nursing homes to the mandate, along with testing and vaccine education requirements. “Of particular importance, the interactive effect of both staff and patient COVID-19 vaccination rates reaching or approaching 90% has helped each group protect the other,” CMS said. “Vaccinating staff protects both staff and patients, as does vaccinating patients. In this regard, we emphasize that our current and planned use of data on both staff and patient vaccination rates will maintain consistent pressure on the healthcare providers and suppliers regulated by CMS to maintain and improve current success rates.” Over 10 million healthcare workers were vaccinated under the rule.
Read more on McKnights Long-Term Care News.