Knowledge Base Article

This week we highlight key updates spanning from April 20th through April 26th, 2021.

Resource Spotlight: HHS’ COVID-19 Public Education Campaign & Community Corps

HHS has launched a public education campaign “to increase public confidence in and uptake of the COVID-19 vaccines while reinforcing basic prevention measures such as mask wearing and social distancing.” HHS is expanding the campaign through the creation of the COVID-19 Community Corps. Members of this group will receive resources to build vaccine confidence in your community, including:

• Fact Sheets,
• Social Media Content, and
• Regular email updates with the latest vaccine news and resources to share.

You can sign up to be a member of the COVID-19 Community Corps at https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/covidcommunitycorps.

April 20, 2021: I Received the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine, Now What?

The CDC has created a Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine update page (link). The April 20th update highlights the following “What you need to know” information:

• “The use of Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen (J&J/Janssen) COVID-19 Vaccine is paused for now. This is because the safety systems that make sure vaccines are safe received a small number of reports of people who got this vaccine experiencing a rare and severe type of blood clot with low platelets.
• Seek medical care right away if you develop any of the symptoms listed in the question and answer – what if I got the J&J/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine?
• If you have any questions at all, call your doctor, nurse, or clinic.”

April 20, 2021: COVID-19 Update – FDA Revoked EUA for Bamlanivimab When Administered Alone

In last week’s article, I reported that on April 16th, the FDA revoked the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Bamlanivimab when administered alone. CMS released a Special Edition MLN Connects related to this revocation (link). They note that they will cover and pay for Bamlanivimab, when administered alone, for dates of service from November 10, 2020 through April 16, 2021.

April 22, 2021: CDC & Dialysis Organizations Partner to Provide COVID-19 Vaccine

The CDC announced in the Thursday April 22nd MLN Connects newsletter (link) that they are partnering with dialysis organizations nationwide to make the COVID-19 vaccine available to patients and health care personnel in outpatient dialysis clinics. CMS reminds you that there is no copayment, coinsurance or deductible for receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.

April 22, 2021: New Acute Care Delivery at Home Tip Sheet

Also in the April 22nd MLN Connects, CMS provides a link to a new Acute Care Delivery at Home Tip Sheet (link). In addition to the Tip Sheet a link is provided to the CMS Acute Hospital Care at Home webpage where you will find an overview of this program, reporting measures participating hospitals are required to provide, additional resources, and access to past webinars.

April 22, 2021: HHS’ “We Can Do This: Live” Initiative

Building upon the “We Can Do This” public education campaign, HHS announced the launch of their “We Can Do This: Live” series “to pair medical experts with prominent influencers and organizations with large social followings to meet people where they are with the information they need to feel confident about receiving the vaccine. Events will include conversations to answer direct questions about COVID-19, Instagram Live Q&As, and social media account takeovers where doctors, scientists and health officials can provide the public with factual, scientific information about vaccines.” HHS notes in the Press Release (link) that this initiative follows the launch of the COVID-19 Community Corps initiative.

April 23, 2021: Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 Vaccine Pause Lifted

After a “thorough safety review,” the CDC and FDA announced that use of the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 vaccine should resume. The Fact Sheets related to this vaccine have all been revised to include information about the risk of thrombosis-thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS). The FDA goes on to note that as of April 23rd they can confirm 15 cases of TTS. All cases were women between 18 and 59 years old, with a median age of 37 years. Symptom onset was between 6 and 15 days after vaccination. (link)