On Friday, November 26, 2021, the World Health Organization (“WHO”) reported a new variant of COVID-19, the Omicron variant, was detected in South Africa. There is no indication the new variant is more contagious or more lethal, or that it
November 2021
CMS Publishes Final Guidance for Hospital Co-location with Other Hospitals or Healthcare Facilities
On November 12, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued its final guidance for hospitals to clarify how CMS and state agency surveyors will evaluate space-sharing or contracted staff and service arrangements with other hospitals or healthcare…
US 5th Cir. grants a nationwide stay of OSHA’s vaccine-or-test mandate
On November 6, 2021, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a nationwide stay of the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA)‘s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) vaccine-or-test mandate that was issued on November 5, 2021. The court granted the…
US OSHA issues COVID vaccine and testing Emergency Temporary Standard
On Friday, November 5, 2021, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) published an Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) “to protect unvaccinated employees of large employers (100 or more employees) from the risk of contracting COVID-19 by strongly encouraging vaccination.”…
CMS Issues COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate Interim Final Rule
On November 4, 2021, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an interim final rule requiring that Medicare-certified providers implement policies for vaccination of all health care workers against COVID-19. Compliance with the requirement will be a Condition…
CMS issues Calendar Year 2022 OPPS/ASC Payment System final rule
On November 2, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”)released its Calendar Year (“CY”) 2022 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (“OPPS”) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (“ASC”) Payment System final rule. This final rule is scheduled to…