Public Health Proclamation: Takeaways for Health Care Providers

Governor Reynolds issued a proclamation on March 26, 2020 imposing new requirements on hospitals, nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, residential care facilities, hospice programs, and assisted living facilities, while also providing certain regulatory relief to these facilities.  The proclamation is the latest in a series of efforts by the Governor to combat the spread of COVID-19.    

Mandatory Screening of Employees.  Most significantly, the proclamation requires health care facilities to screen every staff member at the beginning of his or her shift for fever or respiratory symptoms, absence or shortness of breath, or new or change in cough or sore throat.  The facilities are also required to take each employee’s temperature.  Based on this screening, facilities are required to take any preventative measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

Regulatory Relief.  The proclamation also provides certain regulatory relief to health care facilities, including the following:

Temporarily suspends certain requirements related to performing criminal history checks on prospective employees.

• Temporarily suspends provisions requiring nursing facilities and residential care facilities to provide group activities.
• Temporarily suspends provisions permitting in-person visits with residents in nursing facilities.
• Temporarily suspends certain requirements for assisted living programs and residential care facilities to update a tenant’s or resident’s service plan within 30 days of occupancy.

This is not an exhaustive list of the regulatory relief provisions in the proclamation.  The full text of the proclamation is available here.  If you have any questions regarding the latest proclamation or how it affects your facility, please do not hesitate to contact any member of the BrownWinick Health Law Practice Group.