Health & Fitness
Nursing Homes Given Choice: Vaccinate Staff Or Lose Federal Funds
To date, only about one-quarter of U.S. nursing homes have at least 75 percent of staff fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
WASHINGTON, DC — The Biden administration on Wednesday announced it will require U.S. nursing homes to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations among staff or lose federal funding, according to a report.
The Department of Health and Human Servies is expected to develop new regulations for long-term care workers who support people enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid programs, The Hill reported. The regulations would apply to more than 15,000 nursing home facilities employing approximately 1.3 million people.
To date, vaccination rates among nursing home staff remain discouragingly low. About 60 percent of nursing home and long-term care facility staff nationwide are partially or fully vaccinated, according to federal data compiled by CMS.
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Only about one-quarter of nursing homes have at least 75 percent of staff vaccinated.
Find out what's happening in Across Americafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
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