Health Information Compliance Alert
PHE Gets Its 8th Renewal
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You can heave a sigh of relief — the feds are extending the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) … again. On Jan. 14, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra renewed the COVID-19 PHE effective Jan. 16. Originally, the PHE was slated to expire on that date, but with this latest declaration is now extended for another 90 days. This eighth update follows previous 2021 renewals on Oct. 18, July 19, April 15, and Jan. 7. Before that, former HHS Secretary Alex Azar renewed the PHE declaration in 2020 on Oct. 2, July 23, and April 21. The original PHE declaration was effective Jan. 27, 2020. Reminder: As part of the PHE, the federal government allows for regulatory leniency and relaxed federal guidelines to accommodate providers struggling under COVID-19’s impact. This includes 1135 waivers and other flexibilities related to various Medicare policies and regulations. The last update to CMS’ “COVID-19 Emergency Declaration Blanket Waivers for Health Care Providers” document was Nov. 29, 2021. Find the 1135 waivers at www.cms.gov/files/document/covid-19-emergency-declaration-waivers.pdf and the HHS Secretary’s declaration at https://aspr.hhs.gov/legal/PHE/Pages/COVID19-14Jan2022.aspx.
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PHE Gets Its 8th Renewal
You can heave a sigh of relief — the feds are extending the COVID-19 Public [...]