The Emergency Preparedness Final Rule was released on Friday, September 16, 2016. AHCA, along with guest speakers, will hold a webinar series event this year on the new emergency preparedness final rule impacting Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF), Nursing Facilities (NF) and Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID). This final rule is not applicable to Assisted Living Providers.
Providers will need to be in compliance by November 15th 2017. The webinar series will include, special guest speakers, an overview of the key new requirements, a list of tools to assess if you are prepared for the rule, steps to take now to prepare.
On Friday, September 1st, CMS released a memorandum
to State Survey Agency Directors announcing that the Emergency Preparedness
Training is now available. All surveyors are required to take the training
prior to surveying the Emergency Preparedness requirements. Surveying for
requirements begins November 15th, 2017.
The
online course is now available on the Surveyor Training Website On-Demand.
Once in the course catalog for provider training, search “emergency” and the
course information will appear. Providers will have continued (ongoing) access
to the course, so they can review it anytime.
Members are strongly encouraged to review and complete the
training as it includes quizzes and exercises to check understanding. The
training states to surveyors that the requirements do not prescribe or mandate
specific technology or tools nor detailed requirements for how facilities
should write emergency plans. The training includes the questions surveyors
will ask and how documentation will be reviewed and checked. Links to resources
and glossary terms are also included.