CMS to Require Staff Vaccinations Among Nursing Homes Nationwide

This week, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced the development of an emergency regulation requiring staff vaccinations against COVID-19 within the country’s more than 15,000 Medicare and Medicaid-participating nursing facilities.

According to CMS, the new requirement is intended to protect the health and safety of nursing home residents and staff by ensuring that all staff receive the COVID-19 vaccine. While CMS undertakes emergency rulemaking procedures, the agency encourages nursing home residents and staff to receive their vaccine.

Additional information from CMS is available here.