Governor Cuomo Announces Steady COVID-19 Progress, Extension of Special Health Insurance Enrollment
Today (July 16th), Governor Cuomo announced in a press release (available here) that special enrollment for uninsured New Yorkers through the NY State of Health insurance marketplace will be extended for another 30 days through August 15th. Consumers must apply within 60 days of losing coverage.
COVID-19 hospitalizations, infections, and deaths generally remain steady across New York State. Yesterday there were 813 hospitalizations and 14 deaths related to COVID-19. Of 72,685 tests conducted yesterday, 1% came back positive. New York City is on track to enter Phase 4 of reopening on Monday, July 20th, without additional indoor activity permitted.
Governor Cuomo Issues Executive Order 202.51
On July 13th, Governor Cuomo signed Executive Order 202.51 (here), which extends most provisions contained in Executive Order 202.31 (here) through August 12th. This includes the extension of provisions in previously issued Executive Orders 202.3-202.14 that closed or restricted public and private businesses and cancelled all non-essential gatherings (“NY on PAUSE”), unless those provisions have been otherwise waived by subsequent directives related to the State’s phased reopening plan.
The Order also extends Executive Orders 202.41 – 202.43 through August 12th. Executive Order 202.41 (here) removes restrictions on the in-person workforce at non-essential businesses or other entities for Phase Three industries in regions that have entered Phase Three of reopening, including restaurants and personal care. Executive Order 202.42 (here) increases the number of individuals permitted at non-essential gatherings in regions that have entered Phase Three from 10 individuals to 25 individuals. Executive Order 202.43 (here) allows any certified residential program for victims of domestic violence that provided services to a victim of a crime related to domestic violence to be considered a “criminal justice agency.” It also contains provisions related to property taxes, school taxes, and the enforcement of social distancing outside restaurants and bars.
OPWDD Updated Guidance and FAQ on the Resumption of Day Services
Today, the New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) released revised guidance (here) on the resumption day services and an FAQ (here) on those guidelines. The revised guidelines update the transportation requirements by clarifying that:
- While individuals and staff from other day programs should not be intermingled for the purposes of transportation, other individuals transported together are encouraged to be cohorted for the purposes of day programming and to reduce further intermingling.
- Capacity on buses, vans, and other vehicles transporting individuals from multiple residences should be reduced by 50 percent of total capacity, but individuals and staff who reside/work together in the same home may be transported together to day programs without a vehicle capacity reduction.
- Individuals and staff from different households should restrict close contact to the extent possible.
- Social distancing must be maintained for individuals who cannot tolerate wearing a face mask and, when possible, such individuals should be transported alone or with members of the same household.
This guidance for reopening day services was effective on July 15th in all regions that have entered Phase 4 of reopening (currently all regions except New York City, which is expected to do so on July 20th).
The FAQ document confirms that retainer payments will end on July 21st after the federal government clarified that retainer payments are capped at a total of 90 service days. The FAQ document also clarifies that agencies will continue to be paid for virtual services as long as the flexibility of the Appendix K waiver and New York State Executive Orders remain in place. Additionally, individuals who refuse to return to day programming can continue to receive day programming in their residence or virtually. They should also be referred to their care manager to identify viable alternatives. The FAQ document also includes additional clarifications on the applicability of the guidance document and requirements related to the safety plan/attestation, day program entrances, transportation, capacity/social distancing, billing, and life plans/service authorization.
DOH Bi-Weekly Provider COVID-19 Webinar
Today, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) held its bi-weekly provider webinar (here). The webinar provided treatment and testing updates, discussed progress on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, and reviewed the State’s travel advisory requirements. The webinar noted that the DOH COVID-19 test locator (here) now includes an option for recently approved at-home COVID-19 diagnostic collection kits. Individuals will need to respond to a series of questions to determine if they qualify to receive a home kit. The webinar also provided contact information for providers to order mirror clings that provide guidance on handwashing as well as other COVID-19 prevention flyers or screening forms. Providers or organizations interested in ordering these materials can email bmcc@health.ny.gov.
DOH’s weekly provider webinars are held every other Thursday at 1pm and can be viewed here. The next webinar will be held on July 30th.
Federal Updates
Senate Democrats Unveil Economic Justice Act
Today, Senate Democrats announced a legislative proposal, title “The Economic Justice Act,” that would provide $350 billion in immediate and long-term investments in communities of color. The immediate objectives of the proposal are to help communities of color respond to the pandemic through a $135 billion investment in child care, mental health and primary care, and jobs. The long-term objectives of the proposal include investing $215 billion for infrastructure, a homeowner down payment tax credit, Medicaid expansion, and more, over the next five years.
A summary of the proposal is available here.
HHS Directs Hospitals to No Longer Submit COVID-19 Data to CDC
On July 10th, HHS released a memo instructing hospitals to cease reporting COVID-19 data through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network as of July 15th and instead report it to HHS using one of two methods. Hospitals must submit capacity and utilization data on a daily basis either by:
- Reporting directly to Teletracking, a portal set up by HHS using a private contractor; or,
- Reporting to each hospitals’ state so long as they have received a written release from the state and the state has received written certification from their Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Regional Administrator to take over Federal reporting responsibilities.
HHS intends to use this data for the distribution of Remdesivir and other treatments and supplies, and will no longer be sending out one-time requests for data.
The memo is available here.
CMS Updates COVID-19 Medicare FFS Billing FAQs
CMS continues to update the COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) Billing document. Notable updates include:
- CMS will delay the filing deadline of Fiscal Year End (FYE) 10/31/2019 and FYE 11/30/2019 cost reports until June 30th, 2020. CMS will also delay the filing deadline of the FYE 12/31/2019 cost reports until August 31st, 2020. For the FYE 01/31/2020 cost report, the extended due date is August 31st, 2020. For the FYE 02/29/2020 cost report, the extended due date is September 30, 2020. The extension impacts the following cost reporting fiscal year ends for all provider types.
The FAQs are available here.