Medicare requires nursing homes to report COVID vaccinations

Medicare says it will require nursing homes to report COVID-19 vaccination rates for residents and staff, in what officials hope will be an incentive for facilities to keep giving shots even as the worst ravages of the pandemic ease

WASHINGTON -- Medicare will require nursing homes to report COVID-19 vaccination rates for residents and staff, the government said Tuesday, in what officials hope will be an incentive for facilities to keep giving shots even as the worst ravages of the pandemic ease. “We’re hoping to drive increased vaccination rates among residents and staff, as well as transparency for residents and their families," said Dr. Lee Fleisher, chief medical officer at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The agency expects to start receiving vaccination numbers from nursing homes in the coming weeks and plans to post the information on the internet so residents and families can easily access the details. Nursing homes are now required to report COVID-19 cases and deaths but not vaccinations. A relatively small number of facilities provide the data voluntarily to the government. People living in long-term care facilities have borne a heavy toll from the pandemic. They represent about 1% of the U.S. population but accounted for 1 in 3 deaths, according to estimates from the COVID Tracking Project. Cases and deaths have plummeted after the government launched a concerted effort to vaccinate residents and staff.