This week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued an alert to providers “on how they should manage residents and workers who may want to visit loved ones during the Thanksgiving holiday.” The agency encouraged family and friends to “work together to take extra precautions to help reduce the spread of COVID-19,” including finding new ways to celebrate the holidays without increasing the chance for a virus spread.
The alert also calls providers to “supply information to residents and their families about the risks they face if they do leave the facility.” Alongside taking extra precautions at home, the CMS recommends “providers screen and monitor [residents] for signs and symptoms of the disease.” Alongside residents and their families, the alert asked nursing home staff members to take precautions during the next few weeks. Leaders in long-term care hope that the sadness of COVID-19 is a “call to action,” in hopes that next year’s holidays can look more normal.
For more on the CMS alert, read here.
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