Knowledge Base Article

MMP remains committed to continuing to monitor for COVID-19 updates specific to our reader base. This week we highlight key updates spanning from September 1st through the 8th.

Resource Spotlight: Travel during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The CDC’s Travel during the COVID-19 Pandemic webpage provides information about:

• Reasons you should not travel,
• Considerations prior to travel,
• What to do if you do travel,
• Considerations for types of travel (i.e., air, bus, care, RV),
• Tips to avoid getting and spreading COVID-19 in common travel situations (i.e., bathrooms and rest stops),
• Anticipating your travel needs, and
• What to do after you have traveled.

September 1, 2020: Provider Relief for Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs)

HHS announced that ALFs may now apply for funding under the Provider Relief Fund Phase 2 General Distribution allocation. This funding was made possible through the CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Healthcare Enforcement Act.

September 3, 2020: $2 Billion Provider Relief Fund Nursing Home Incentive Payment Plans

HHS announced “details of a $2 billion Provider Relief Fund (PRF) performance-based incentive payment distribution to nursing homes. This distribution is the latest update in the previously announced $5 billion in planned support to nursing homes grappling with the impact of COVID-19. Last week, HHS announced it had delivered an additional $2.5 billion in payments to nursing homes to help with upfront COVID-19-related expenses for testing, staffing, and personal protective equipment (PPE) needs. Other resources are also being dedicated to support training, mentorship and safety improvements in nursing homes.”

The Press Release provides details regarding:

• Qualifications to participate in the Program,
• The performance and payment cycle, and
• Methodology to measure a facilities performance. Specifically, nursing homes will have their performance measured on their ability to keep new COVID infection rates low among residents and ability to keep COVID mortality low among residents.

September 3, 2020: Reported Cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) in the United States

The CDC has been tracking reports of MIS-C since mid-May 2020. According to the CDC, this is “a rare but serious condition associated with COVID-19. MIS-C is a new syndrome, and many questions remain about why some children develop it after a COVID-19 illness or contact with someone with COVID-19, while others do not.”

MIS-C Cases as of September 3, 2020:

• 792 confirmed cases and 16 deaths in 42 states,
• Most cases are in children between 1 and 14 years old with an average age of 8,
• More than 70% of reported cases have occurred in children who are Hispanic/Latino (276 cases) or Non-Hispanic Black (230 cases),
• 99% of cases (783) tested positive for COVID-19 while the remaining 1% were around someone with COVID-19,
• Most children developed MIS-C 2-4 weeks after COVID-19 infection, and
• 54% of reported cases have been male.

The CDC MIS-C webpage provides additional information about the disease, what they are doing, and information for healthcare professionals.

September 8, 2020: CDC COVID Data Tracker – United States COVID-19 Cases

• Total Cases: 6,287,362,
• Total Deaths: 188,688
• Deaths per 100,000 people: 57
• Cases in last 7 days: 282, 919
• Link to CDC COVID Data Tracker: https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/?deliveryName=USCDC_2067-DM37553#cases