Healthcare Providers
COVID-19 Information, Resources and Updates for Hospitals, Skilled Nursing/Long Term Care and Practitioners
Re-Opening for Healthcare Providers, Hospitals and SNF/LTC
Re-Opening: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
- CMS: Recommendations Re-opening Facilities to Provide Non-emergent Non-COVID-19 Healthcare: Phase I
- CMS: May 5, 2020 Update: Actions Taken in Response to COVID-19 as part of the ongoing White House Task Force Efforts
- CMS: May 18, 2020: Trump Administration Issues Guidance to Ensure States Have a Plan in Place to Safely Reopen Nursing Homes
- CMS: May 18, 2020 Nursing Home Reopening Recommendations for State and Local Officials
- CMS: May 18, 2020 Nursing Home Reopening Recommendations Frequently Asked Questions
Re-Opening: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- CDC: Re-opening Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfecting Public Spaces, Workplaces, Businesses, Schools and Homes
- CDC: Daily Habits for Every Person
- CDC: Take Steps to Protect Children and Others from Getting Sick
Testing
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
General Information for Healthcare Providers, Hospitals and SNF/LTC
- Checklist to Prepare Physician Offices for COVID-19
- American Health Care Association: Preventing COVID-19 in Long Term Care Facilitites
- Social Media Toolkit
- Medicaid Coronavirus Disease Resource Guide
- Medicaid Coronavirus State Resource Guide
- Medicare Enrollment and Certification Resources
FFCRA and CARES Act
- Information for Providers About the Families First Coronavirus Response Act
- Information for Providers About the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act
- CARES Act Overhauls Federal Substance Use Disorder Privacy Law (42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA)
Funding
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
CMS: General
- CMS: Current Emergencies
- CMS: COVID-19 Response News Alert
- CMS: Unprecedented Data Sharing During COVID-19 Crisis
- CMS: Trump Administration Issues Second Round of Sweeping Changes to Support U.S. Healthcare System During COVID-19 Pandemic
- CMS: COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness
- CMS: Lessons from the Front Lines on COVID-19
- CMS: Outreach and Education Surrounding COVID-19
- CMS: COVID-19 Partner Toolkit
CMS: Fact Sheets
- CMS: COVID-19 Emergency Declaration Health Care Providers Fact Sheet
- CMS: Accelerated and Advanced Payments Fact Sheet
- CMS: May 26, 2020 CMS Fact Sheet for State and Local Governments – Programs & Payment for Care in Hospital Alternate Care Sites
CMS: Video and Webinar Resources
- CMS: Guidance on Documentation – Video
- CMS: Recorded COVID-19 Stakeholder Engagement Calls and Transcripts
CMS: Infection Control and Prevention
- CMS: Healthcare Infection Prevention and Control FAQs for COVID-19
- CMS: COVID-19 Updates for Surveyors and Accrediting Organizations on Infection Control and EMTALA
- CMS: Guidance for Infection Control and Prevention of COVID-19
- Hospitals, Psychiatric Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs)
- Outpatient Settings
- Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IIDs) and Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilitites (PRTFs)
- Patient Triage, Placement and Hospital Discharge
- Hospice Agencies
- Home Health Agencies (HHAs)
- Home Health Agencies and Religious Non-medical Healthcare Institutions
- Dialysis Facilities
- for Patients with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings
- Inpatient Obstetric Healthcare Settings
CMS: Medical Operations Coordination Cells
- Medical Operations Coordination Cells (MOCCs) Toolkit, First Edition: Lear to establish MOCCs to ensure load-balancing across health care facilities and systems
- Establishing Medical Operations Coordination Cells (MOCCs) for COVID-19 Webinar: Features jurisdictions with COVID-19-related experience using the MOCC concept
CMS: Elective/Non-Essential Treatment
- CMS: Recommendations on Adult Elective Surgeries, Non-Essential Medical, Surgical, and Dental Procedures Curing COVID-19 Response
- CMS: Adult Elective Surgery and Procedures Recommendations
- CMS: COVID-19: Non-Emergent, Elective Medical Services and Treatment Recommendations
CMS: Reporting for Providers, Hospitals and Facilities
- CMS: Quality Reporting Relief
- CMS: Request for Hospitals to Report to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
Nursing Home Reporting
- CMS: Upcoming Requirements for Notification of Confirmed COVID-19 Among Residents and Staff in Nursing Homes
- CMS: Survey Guidance
CMS: Quality Payment Program
- CMS: Quality Payment Program and Value Based Purchasing Program COVID-19 Relief
- CMS: Trump Administration Champions Reporting of COVID-19 Clinical Trial Data through Quality Payment Program, Announces New Clinical Trials Improvement Activity
Noridian-Medicare
Noridian-Medicare: Accelerated Payments
- Noridian – COVID-19 Accelerated Payments
- Noridian – Accelerated Payments FAQs
- CMS – Accelerated and Advanced Payments Fact Sheet
- CMS – Approval of $34 Billion for Providers with the Accelerated/Advance Payment Program for Medicare Providers
- CARES Act Provider Relief Fund
- CARES ACT Provider Relief Fund Terms and Conditions
- CMS: Re-evaluation of Accelerated Payment Program and Suspension Advance Payment Program
Noridian-Medicare: Request Forms
- Noridian – Provider Request for Accelerated Payment Form
- Noridian – Accelerated Payment Request Certification
CMS: Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA)
- CMS: COVID-19 Updates for Surveyors and Accrediting Organizations on Infection Control and EMTALA
- CMS: EMTALA Requirements and Implications Related to COVID-19
- CMS: EMTALA Requirements and Implications Related to COVID-19 (Revised)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
CDC: General
- CDC: Ongoing Updates
- CDC: Healthcare Preparedness Tools
- CDC: Environmental Cleaning and Disinfection Recommendations
- CDC: Role in Helping Cruise Ship Travelers During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- CDC: Communication Fact Sheets
CDC: For Healthcare Facilities
- CDC: Public Health Reminder for Healthcare Facilities
- CDC: Preparedness Checklist for Healthcare Facilities
- CDC: COVID-19 Surge Manual
- CDC: COVID-19 Surge Spreadsheet-Based Tool for Hospital Administrators and Public Health Officials for Estimating Surge Demand
- CDC: Ten Ways Healthcare Systems Can Operate Effectively During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- CDC: Preventing COVID-19 from Spreading in Homes and Communities
- CDC: Interim Guidance for Implementing Safety Practices for Critical Infrastructure: Workers Who May Have Had Exposure to a Person with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19
- CDC: Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings
- CDC: Discontinuation of Isolation for Persons with COVID-19 not in Healthcare Settings
- CDC: Preparing for COVID-19 in Nursing Homes
CDC: For Healthcare Providers
- CDC: What Healthcare Providers Should Know
- CDC: Frequently Asked Questions for Healthcare Providers
- CDC: Infection Control Guidelines for Providers
- CDC: Interim Guidelines for Collecting, Handling and Testing Clinical Specimens from Persons for COVID-19
- CDC: Interim Guidance for Public Health Personnel Evaluating Persons Under Investigation (PUIs) and Asymptomatic Close Contacts of Confirmed Cases at Their Home or Non-Home Residential Settings
- CDC: Interim Guidelines for Collecting, Handling and Testing Clinical Specimens from Persons for COVID-19
CDC: For Clinicians
- CDC: Clinical Care Guidance
- CDC: Dear Clinician: Letter Example
- CDC: Evaluation and Management Considerations for Neonates at Risk for COVID-19
CDC: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- CDC: Personal Protective Equipment
- CDC: Recommendation to Wear Face Masks
- CDC: POSTER – Understanding the Different Types of Masks
Supply and Reuse of PPE
- CDC: Optimizing PPE Supply
- CDC: Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of N95 Respirators
- CDC: Stockpiles – N95 Respirators
- CDC: Decontamination and Reuse of Filtering Facepieces
- CDC: Recommended Guidance for Extended Use and Limited Reuse of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators in Healthcare Settings
- CDC: Options to Prolong Existing and Surge Capacity Supplies of Respirators During Infection with Novel Influenza A Viruses Associated with Severe Disease
CDC: National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN)
- CDC: NHSN – CMS Requirements
- CDC: NHSN – March 27, 2020 Press Release
- CDC: NHSN – CDC and CMS Issue Joint Reminder on NHSN Reporting
- CDC: NHSN – CMS Quality Reporting Programs FAQs
- CDC: NHSN – CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network LTCF COVID-19 Module
U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
HHS: General
- HHS: Emergency Preparedness Index
- HHS: Emergency Preparedness Resources for Persons from Diverse Cultural Origins
- HHS: FAQs About the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and CARES Act
HHS: For Healthcare Facilities
HHS: Office for Civil Rights
- OCR: Emergency Preparedness Index
- OCR: Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Community-Based Testing Sites During COVID-19
- OCR: Early Care Resolution with Alabama after Removing Ventilator Triaging Guidelines
HIPAA
- HHS: Office for Civil Rights’ (OCR) Bulletin on the HIPAA Waiver Following COVID
- HHS: Office for Civil Rights’ (OCR) Bulletin on HIPAA Privacy and Novel Coronavirus
- HHS: OCR Notification of Enforcement Discretion to Allow Uses and Disclosures of Protected Health Information by Business Associates for Public Health and Health Oversight Activities During The COVID-19 Nationwide Public Health Emergency
- OCR: Update on HIPAA and COVID-19: Webinar
HIPAA, Civil Rights and COVID-19 (Special Topics for Providers)
- HHS: HIPAA, Civil Rights and COVID-19
- HHS: How Federal Civil Rights Laws Apply in an Emergency
HIPAA Disclosures for Emergency Preparedness Decision Tool - HHS: How the HIPAA Privacy Rule applies in an Emergency
- HHS: HIPAA Privacy and COVID-19
- HHS: Notice on HIPAA and First Responders During COVID-19
- HHS: HIPAA Disclosures for Emergency Preparedness Decision Tool
- HHS: Notice on HIPAA and First Responders During COVID-19
- HHS: Waiver or Modification of Requirements Under Section 1135 of the Social Security Act
- HHS: Security Rule Guidance Material
- HHS: COVID-19 & HIPAA Bulletin Limited Waiver of HIPAA Sanctions and Penalties During a Nationwide Public Health Emergency
Disclosures to Public Health
- HHS: HIPAA for Professionals (Special Topics for Public Health)
- HHS: HIPAA for Professionals Emergency Preparedness Index
Disclosures to Law Enforcement
- HHS: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule: A Guide for Law Enforcement
- HHS: OCR – COVID-19 and HIPAA Disclosures to Law Enforcement, Paramedics, other First Responders and Public Health Authorities
First Responders
- HHS: Guidance to Help Ensure First Responders and Others Receive Protected Health Information
- HHS: Ground Ambulance Organizations: Providers Call
Business Associates
- HHS: Notice of Enforcement Discretion for Business Associates
- HHS: Sample Business Associate Agreement Provisions
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
- OSHA: COVID-19 Overview
- OSHA: Preventing Worker Exposure to Coronavirus
- OSHA: Standards and Directives during COVID-19
- OSHA: Hospital eTool
- OSHA: Healthcare Respiratory Protection Annual Fit-Testing for N95 Filtering Facepieces During COVID-19 Outbreak
World Health Organization (WHO)
- WHO: Guidance on Clinical Management of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection when Coronavirus (nCoV) Infection is Suspected
- WHO: Guideline for Isolation Precautions: Preventing Transmission of Infectious Agents in Healthcare Settings
Telehealth
Telehealth: General Information
- Telehealth Resource Center
- OCR Notification of Enforcement Discretion Detailing that it will Not Impose Penalties for Noncompliance with HIPAA Rules in Connection with the Good Faith Provision of Telehealth During the COVID-19 Emergency
- CMS Launches New Toolkit to Help States Navigate COVID-19 Health Workforce Challenges
- CMS: Guidance Video on Medicare Telehealth Coverage and Payment of Virtual Services
- HHS: Secretary Azar Announces Historic Expansion of Telehealth Access to Combat COVID-19
Telehealth: CMS
- CMS: Telemedicine Toolkit
- CMS: Medicare Telehealth Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- CMS: Guidance Video on Medicare Telehealth Coverage and Payment of Virtual Services
- CMS: Covered Telehealth Services for PHE for the COVID-19 Pandemic
- CMS: Billing for Professional Telehealth Distant Site Services During COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
Telehealth: HHS and OCR
- HHS: Secretary Azar Announces Historic Expansion of Telehealth Access to Combat COVID-19
- HHS: Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Telehealth Remote Communications During the COVID-19 Nationwide Public Health Emergency
- March 17, 2020 OCR Announces Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Telehealth Remote Communications During the COVID-19 Nationwide Public Health Emergency
Telehealth: OIG
- OIG: Memorandum on Waiving Telehealth Cost-Sharing During COVID-19
- OIG: Telehealth Fact Sheet
- OIG: Updated Telehealth Corporate Integrity Agreement Documents
- OIG: Updated Civil Monetary Penalties and Affirmative Exclusions for Telehealth
Telehealth: For Facilities and Providers
- Nursing Home Telehealth Toolkit
- Preparing for COVID-19 in Nursing Homes
- Telehealth Updates for Providers
- CMS – Telemedicine Healthcare Provider Factsheet
Telehealth: For Clinicians
Telehealth: Montana
- Office of the Montana State Auditor Commissioner of Securities and Insurance: Montana Health Insurers Expanding Telehealth Coverage to Fight COVID-19
- Montana Governor Bullock’s Statement on Telehealth During COVID-19
Post-Acute Transfers
Waivers and Flexibilities
- CMS: Information on Emergency Waivers and Flexibilities
- CMS: Emergency Declaration for Blanket Waivers for Health Care Providers
- CMS: Waivers and COVID-19 Response Presentation
- CMS: April 30, 2020 Update: Sweeping Regulatory Changes to Help U.S. Healthcare System Address COVID-19 Patient Surge
- CMS: April 22, 2020 Emergency Declaration Waiver Updates
- CMS: May 15, 2020 Emergency Declaration Waiver Updates
1135 Waivers
- CMS: 1135 Waiver Resources
- Official 1135 Waiver Checklist
- CMS: Requesting an 1135 Waiver
- CMS: What to Provide for an 1135 Waiver
- CMS: 1135 Waiver Questions and Answers
- CMS: Additional Emergency and Disaster-Related Policies and Procedures That May Be Implemented Only With a 1135 Waiver
- CMS: Emergency-Related Policies and Procedures That May Be Implemented Without 1135 Waivers
- HHS: Waiver or Modification of Requirements Under Section 1135 of the Social Security Act
- OCR: Bulletin on the HIPAA 1135 Waiver Following COVID
Other Flexibilities
- CMS: Guidance for Processing Attestations from Ambulatory Surgical Centers (ASCs) Temporarily Enrolling as Hospitals
- CMS: 1915(c) Appendix K Waiver Amendments
- CMS: Medicaid State Plan Amendments
- CMS: CHIP State Plan Amendments
- CMS: Blanket Waivers of Sanctions under the Physician Self-Referral Law
- CMS: Explanatory Guidance: Blanket Waivers of Section 1877(g) of the Social Security Act
- CMS: Hospitals Without Walls Initiative (Presentation Slides)
- CMS: Hospice-Related Flexibilitites to Fight COVID-19
Waivers and Flexibilities – PDF Downloads
- Potential Waivers (PDF)
- Physicians and Other Practitioners (PDF)
- Ambulances (PDF)
- Hospitals (PDF)
- Teaching Hospitals, Teaching Physicians and Medical Residents (PDF)
- Long Term Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities and/or Nursing Facilities) (PDF)
- Home Health Agencies (PDF)
- Hospices (PDF)
- Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (PDF)
- Long Term Care Hospitals & Extended Neoplastic Disease Care Hospitals (PDF)
- Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) (PDF)
- Laboratories (PDF)
- End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Facilities (PDF)
- Durable Medical Equipment (PDF)
- Participants in the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (PDF)
- Medicare Advantage and Part D Plans (PDF)
- 1915(c) Appendix K Waivers (PDF)
Montana – Waivers and Flexibilities
Facility Finances
- CARES Act Provider Relief Fund
- CARES Act Provider Relief Fund Terms and Conditions
- Quality Payment Program: MIPS Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Policy in Response to COVID-19
- CMS: Open Payments Program
- Update to CR 11152: Implementation of the Skilled Nursing Facility Patient Driven Payment Model
- CMS: Quality Payment Program and Value Based Purchasing Program COVID-19 Relief
COVID-19 Billing Updates
- Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) Response to the Public Health Emergency on COVID-19
- FAQs on Medicare Fee-for-Service Billing
- Pneumococcal Pneumonia Vaccination: Eligibility Transactions Includes DOS Starting April 13
- CMS: Billing for Professional Telehealth Distant Site Services During COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (Revised April 3, 2020)
Health Care Planning
Advance Care Planning
- CMS – Advance Care Planning Factsheet
- CMS – Outreach and Education on Advance Care Planning
- National Institute on Aging – Advance Care Planning: Healthcare Directives
- POLST – Advance Care Planning Under Medicare
Montana
- Montana Healthcare Program Provider Information Website
- Montana MSU Family Financial Management Healthcare POA Packet
Facility Finances
- Montana Governor Bullock’s Directive Implementing Executive Orders 2-2020 and 3-2020 and Allowing Loans to Medical and Health Facilities for Operating Expenses
- MSU Extension Financial Planning Packet
- Section 1102 Paycheck Protection Program
Advance Care Planning
- New Advance Care Planning Packet from MSU Extension
- Montana Department of Labor and Industry – New 2019 POLST Form
- Montana DPHHS – Guidance and Information on Ordering POLST Envelopes, Bracelets and Necklaces
First Responders
Wyoming
- Information for WY Healthcare Providers
- Healthcare Licensing and Surveys
- Wyoming Public Health Orders
- Wyoming Medical Society Resources
- Wyoming – Advance Care Planning – Health Care Decisions Act Optional Form
- April 23, 2020 – A Transition Plan for a Healthy Wyoming: Wyoming’s Approach to Protect Lives, Ease Restrictions and Spur the Economy