ACHC Reapproved as Accrediting Organization for Another 4 Years
CMS approved ACHC as a hospital accrediting organization (AO) for another four years but only after a few adjustments to survey processes and standards, according to a notice set to be published in the Federal Register September 6.
Healthcare Industry Group Predicts Patient Care Disruptions Due to EPA Regulations
The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) predicts “significant” patient care “disruptions” will result from the EPA’s proposed regulations to slash ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions by 80%, according to Radiology Business.
Joint Commission Issues Guidelines for Dealing With a Cyberattack
The Sentinel Event Alert, titled Preserving Patient Safety After a Cyberattack, lists a number of steps that health system leadership should take to ensure that patient care is safe. One of those most important recommendations is that leadership include all hospital staff in the process, not just IT staff.
The CMS’ State Operations Manual Appears Updated—But Not by Much
After years of changing and adding new Conditions of Participation (CoP), CMS has finally updated its only guidance for surveyors, State Operations Manual, Appendix A (SOM). But not entirely.
Florida Healthcare Facility Cited for Nearly 200 Workplace Violence Incidents in 2022
According to the federal probe, workers at the UHS of Delaware Inc.-Wekiva Springs Center LLC (operating as Wekiva Springs Hospital) were assaulted, confined by patients, and suffered broken bones, concussions, and wounds from being scratched, bitten, punched, and kicked.
Update: Concerns Growing About CMS Crackdown on Survey Early Alerts and Complaint Process
The orders came on June 16 in a surprise joint memo from CMS’ Center for Clinical Standards and Quality and the Quality, Safety & Oversight (QSO) Group that said it was re-enforcing rules long outlined in CMS’ State Operations Manual (SOM) and previously mandated in a memo from 2009.
Will Policy, Regulation Issues Stifle AI’s Advances in Healthcare?
During the recent AIMed Global Summit in San Diego, Alya Sulaiman, a partner in the McDermott Will & Emery law firm who focuses on digital health, described an active landscape in which federal agencies like the Health and Human Services Department’s Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT, the US Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission were competing with the likes of state attorneys general to regulate the technology.
Will a ‘National Patient Safety Board,’ Modeled After the NTSB, Actually Fly?
Two measures are underway to create a safety board: A bill filed in the U.S. House in December by Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-Calif.), which is expected to be refiled this session, calls for the creation of a board to help federal agencies monitor safety events, identify conditions under which problems occur, and suggest preventive measures.
OSHA Cites Workplace Violence at Columbus Children’s Hospital
The hospital failed to protect employees, including nurses and mental health professionals, from patients whose bites, kicks, punches, and other assaults caused serious injuries, according to OSHA. The agency cited the Big Lots Behavioral Health Pavilion with one serious violation and one other-than-serious violation.
COVID Vaccinations Officially Not Required
CMS issued a final rule May 31 officially rescinding the regulatory requirement to vaccinate healthcare staff in hospitals and other health organizations against the COVID-19 virus.