Editor's Note The Joint Commission on May 27 announced that it will begin to resume some survey and review activities in June, and account executives will be contacting organizations due for a survey. The Joint Commission is reviewing a variety of factors and criteria to help determine where and which…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on May 20 posted two new resources to help states reopen. The first is a 60-page document that includes information on general and healthcare surveillance and continuing guidance on infection control, contact tracing, and testing. It also includes a standardized…

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Editor's Note The National Institutes of Health (NIH) on May 14 announced that it is enrolling adults with mild to moderate COVID-19 in a study of treatment with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. The Phase 2b trial is enrolling around 2,000 adults across the US. Participants must have confirmed infection with SARS-CoV-2…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on May 12 posted updated point-of-care (POC) testing biosafety guidelines for COVID-19. The update includes guidance for: use of instruments in a location associated with a current Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments certificate site- and activity-specific risk assessment proper staff training adherence…

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Editor's Note On May 12, California's Governor Gavin Newsom announced that California pharmacists will be allowed to collect specimens and order COVID-19 tests. Specimens will be are processed at public health, university, or commercial labs. The move is an effort to increase the state’s testing capacity as it modifies its…

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Editor's Note The Food & Drug Administration on May 11 took new actions to accelerate the development of novel prevention and treatment options for COVID-19. The agency is providing guidance documents to make the process for submitting applications to initiate studies for new drugs and biological products more efficient. The…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on May 11 released a proposed rule that increases Medicare inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) rates by a net of 3.1% in FY 2021, compared to 2020, for acute care hospitals participating in the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program that…

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Elective surgical procedures that were temporarily suspended in mid-March are now on the table—or soon will be—at some US facilities. The ban, announced on March 18 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), was enacted to free up resources for facilities overwhelmed by surges of COVID-19 patients. On…

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Editor's Note: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on May 8 updated it weekly surveillance summary of COVID-19 activity in the US for week 18. Among the updates: The percentage of specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 decreased at public health, commercial, and clinical laboratories. Labs have confirmed 832,238 positive…

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Editor's Note The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on May 6 issued a guidance to implement section 3121 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) as it relates to shortages and potential shortages of medical devices occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Manufacturers are required to notify…

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