By Kim Stanger
On January 13, 2022, a divided Supreme Court vacated the injunctions that applied to CMS’s vaccine mandate in 24 states, thereby allowing CMS to enforce its mandates in all states except Texas.1 (https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/21a240_d18e.pdf). Here are key points for providers seeking to comply with the mandate.
Deadlines for Compliance. The effective deadlines for compliance run from the date CMS issued its relevant compliance guidance to survey agencies. For facilities in states that were not subject to an injunction, CMS issued its guidance on December 28, 2021. (QSO-22-07-ALL, available at https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-22-07-all.pdf). For facilities in states that were subject to an injunction (i.e., Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming), CMS issued its updated guidance on January 14, 2022. (QSO-22-09-ALL, available at https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-22-09-all-injunction-lifted.pdf). As set forth in the guidance, the deadlines are as follows: Continue reading